‘DANGEROUS’

Packing 900,000 refugees into one place increases health, fire risks, says UN official

COX’S BAZAR

ATOP United Nations official said on Saturday Bangladesh’s plan to build the world’s biggest refugee camp for 900,000 Rohingya was dangerous because overcrowding could heighten the risks of deadly diseases spreading quickly.

The arrival of more than half a million Rohingya refugees who have fled an army crackdown in Myanmar’s troubled Rakhine State since Aug 25 has put an immense strain on packed camps in Bangladesh.

Hard-pressed Bangladesh authorities plan to expand a refugee camp in Kutupalong near here to accommodate the Rohingya.

But Robert Watkins, the UN resident coorvery dinator in Dhaka, said the country should instead look for new sites to build more camps.

“When you concentrate too many people into a small area, particularly the people who are very vulnerable to diseases, it is dangerous.

“There are stronger possibilities, if there are any infectious diseases that spread, that will spread very quickly,” he said, also highlighting fire risks in the camps.

“It is much easier to manage people, and the health and security situation if there are a number of different camps rather than one concentrated camp.”

At the request of the Bangladesh government, the UN’s International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has agreed to coordinate the work of aid agencies and help build shelters at the new camp site.

According to IOM, the proposed camp will be the world's largest, dwarfing Bidi Bidi in Uganda and Dadaab in Kenya — both housing 300,000 refugees.

About 1,200ha of land next to the Kutupalong camp have been set aside for the new Rohingya arrivals.

Bangladeshi officials say the new camp will help them better manage relief operations and ensure the safety of the Rohingya amid fears that dispersed camps could become recruiting grounds for militants.

This week, Bangladesh reported between 4,000 and 5,000 Rohingya were crossing the border daily, with 10,000 more waiting at the frontier. AFP