UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Miyavi expressed hope that a future solution to the Rohingya crisis can be found soon.
“We all know what needs to happen. We hope that the leadership can be found to courageously go forward in a way that brings hope for the future," he said on Tuesday after visiting Rohingya camps for two days.
Miyavi met Rohingya children in Cox’s Bazar on Sunday and Monday.
MIYAVI is a Japanese musician, actor, and philanthropist, who has gained international recognition and acclaim for his unique guitar style, using his fingers instead of a pick to create an elaborate sound, both musically and rhythmically. He was appointed as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador in November 2017.
This is his second visit to the Rohingya camps after his last visit in February 2018.
More than 1 million Rohingya people, most of them children, are living in five refugees camps wedged into the Cox’s Bazar district of southern Bangladesh. An unprecedented humanitarian operation is feeding the Rohingya, providing them with shelter, and keeping disease and the elements at bay.
UN ambassador Miyavi appreciated Bangladesh’s host communities in Cox’s Bazar whose generosity has helped supportthe refugees since their arrival in August 2017.
“The second visit enabled me to understand not only the progress in place, but how it is advancing. The progress includes improvement of shelters and reinforcement of community facilities as part of monsoon preparedness, and the UNHCR-government of Bangladesh joint registration exercise that’s essential for effective delivery of humanitarian aid," said the music star.
He said: "Since my last visit, there’ve been many improvements in the camps. UNHCR and other agencies are supporting not only the refugees, but also the host communities who were the first responders to the refugee crisis."
The host communities have been supporting Rohingyas by sharing their lands and resources, the actor highlighted.
"Through such support given by the host communities, I believe refugees can restore their dignity and hopes for the future," Miyavi said.
In Cox’s Bazar, Miyavi met children at a primary school in Kutupalong established in the 1990s, as well as children at a Learning Center established after 2017.
Currently, education provided at the Learning Centers by aid agencies is not accredited and offers basic subjects like English, mathematics, life skills, and Myanmar.
The Goodwill Ambassador said: “After the immediate emergency phase has passed, refugees are now facing another challenge: how to rebuild their lives. Parents are concerned about education and the kind of education they can provide their children."
"All parents want their children to have a good education, no matter where they live in the world," he said, adding: "Myanmar also needs these children to be educated, when they go back after they feel safe doing so.” had been made since the crisis.
He said: “I’m happy to come back and see the Rohingya people here again. I see that the conditions in the refugee camps have improved a lot since my last visit in early 2018, just after the crisis."
The music star said what he felt more was a sense of anxiety, about the future of the Rohingya people.
"People are worried about what is next. They want to go home. They can see Myanmar’s mountains in the near distance, but they do not feel safe to go back,” said Miyavi.
MIYAVI has used his talent, voice, and platform, to help support various UNHCR campaigns, including #WithRefugees and the Nansen Refugee Award, at which he performed in 2017.
His ongoing promotion of UNHCR’s global work on his social media channels has helped raise awareness of the refugee cause with a much wider audience. He has been particularly vocal on the need for refugee children to receive a quality education.
