My name is Nurul Amin. I am a 56-year-old Rohingya from Tombru Village in Maungdaw Township, Arakan (Rakhine) State. My father’s name is Sayedur Rahman, and my mother’s name is Hajera Khatun. Like countless others in my community, I have faced relentless suffering due to conflict and persecution.
I have been forced to become a refugee four times in my life: First in 1978, during the “Operation King Dragon” military crackdown.
Again in 1992, when another wave of state-sponsored violence pushed us out.
Once more in 2012, after deadly riots and restrictions were imposed on us.
And finally in 2017, after a full-scale genocide was committed against us.
Each time, I lost everything -- my home, my possessions, my dignity.
Each time, I tried to rebuild, only to be uprooted once again.
I have now spent nearly 17 years of my life in refugee camps, with no future and no place to call home.
Sir, today, we suffer again
War rages once more in Arakan, and in the refugee camps of Bangladesh, our food aid is being cut drastically.
My children, just like me, have been robbed of an education and a stable future.
We have been exiled not once, not twice, but four times.
Many of us remember 1992, when we were displaced, and when the United Nations facilitated our repatriation without guarantees of safety and rights.
History repeated itself, and after the atrocities of 2017, we found ourselves once again in Bangladesh, living in camps that were never meant to be permanent homes.
Sir, I have one question for you
We are also human beings, yet in this vast world, why have we not inherited even an inch of land to call our own?
Animals and birds live peacefully. Even fish in the sea survive without struggle. Every creature in this world has a rightful place -- except us.
Why do the Rohingya not even get a foot of land to live in dignity?
I feel deeply sad when I think about this and about my life. Sometimes, I even think of ending it.
What future do I have? What future do my children have? I do not want to live as a refugee any longer.
Your visit to Bangladesh may be the last lifeline we have for meaningful change. We cannot continue like this.
If repatriation is considered, we demand it only under conditions of full citizenship, dignity, and security in our homeland.
Otherwise, I humbly beg you to find an alternative -- a place where we can live as human beings, not as exiles dependent on dwindling food aid.
We hear world leaders and analysts warning about the possibility of World War III, yet even as the world prepares for catastrophe, we remain forgotten.
If humanity is on the brink of a global war, why are we, the Rohingya, still denied the most basic rights in our own country?
Why must we continue to languish in camps, where our children are left with no education, no food, and no future? These questions haunt me every day.
Sir, my request is simple yet urgent
Please help us reclaim our rights in Myanmar. I wish, before the end of my life, to experience security and freedom, just like every other human being on this earth.
If that is not possible, then grant us another place where we can finally live in peace.
We can no longer bear this suffering.
Sir, I believe in the power of the United Nations
I believe you uphold the dignity and rights of all human beings. I implore you -- do not let us be forgotten.
Our people have endured enough. We need justice. We need a future. We need the chance to stand on our own land without fear.
Thank you for reading my plea. I hope you will stand with us, fight for us, and ensure that our suffering ends -- once and for all.
Yours sincerely,
Nurul Amin, Rohingya Refugee
