Bangladesh pledges 'justice' for murdered Rohingya activist
October 3, 2021
The country said "no one will be spared" in the hunt to find Mohibullah's killers. The police have made a number of arrests tied to the murder of the key Rohingya leader.
Mohibullah was killed by unknown gunmen in Kutupalong refugee campImage: Mohammad Ponir Hossain/REUTERS
Mohibullah, the head of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH) who was known by one name, was killed by unknown gunmen in the Kutupalong refugee camp, in the southeastern Bangladeshi district of Cox's Bazar, on Wednesday night.
Police made three arrests on Friday in connection with the killing, but have so far provided no further details.
"The government will take stern action against those who were involved in the killing. No one will be spared," Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen said in his first comment since the killing.
Momen added that "vested" interests were responsible for the killing as Mohibullah had wanted to return to Myanmar. "The killers will certainly be brought to justice. None will be spared," he said.
Are there any suspects?
The three people arrested on Friday are believed to have links to an armed insurgent group among Rohingya refugees.
They are currently being interrogated, said Naimul Huq, a police official in Cox's Bazar.
In an unverified video circulated on social media, Mohibullah's brother, Habib Ullah, who said he witnessed the shooting, blamed the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), an armed group active in the camps.
ARSA said in a post on Twitter on Friday that it was "shocked and saddened" by the killing and decried "finger-pointing with baseless and hearsay accusations."
Who was Mohibullah?
Mohibullah was known as a moderate who advocated for the Rohingya to return to Myanmar with rights they were denied during decades of persecution.
He founded the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights in a bid to document atrocities against Rohingya in their native Myanmar and give them a voice in international talks about their future.
But his high profile made him a target of hard-liners, and he received death threats.
Bangladesh has invested $272 million (€248 million) to make the Bhasan Char island liveable for the Rohingya. But the refugees, currently camped in Cox's Bazar district, are reluctant to move to the cyclone-prone island.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Far from the mainland
Bhasan Char, which means "floating island" in Bengali language, emerged less than 20 years ago in the Bay of Bengal. The island is located 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) away from mainland Bangladesh. The government of the Muslim-majority country plans to relocate some 100,000 Rohingya refugees to this island from overcrowded Cox's Bazar refugee camps.
Image: DW/A. Islam
No easy transportation
There is no proper transport for the common people to go to the island. Some people told DW that the roughness of the sea makes it difficult to reach the island on boats during the monsoon season.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Protected by embankment?
The government has erected a 13-kilometer-long and 3-meter-high embankment to protect the island from high tides and floods. Still, the outer part of the embankment goes 3 to 4 feet underwater twice a month during high tides, according to the island's shopkeepers.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Identical buildings
The government has built 1,440 single-storey buildings, with 16 rooms in each, to house the Rohingya refugees. At least four members of a family have to live in a small room. 120 four-storey shelter houses are also available, to be used during cyclones.
Image: DW/N. Conrad
Solar power for energy
All buildings at Bhasan Char are equipped with solar panels to fulfil their energy demands. A big solar field and two diesel generators for electricity have also been installed. The island has a rainwater harvesting system as well as tube wells to provide drinking water.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Protection from erosion
The silt island is called a "floating island" due to its unstable nature. Satellite images detected the island in 2002. Bangladeshi authorities have built a structure with pylons, gravel and sandbags to stop the erosion of the island.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Is the island uninhabitable?
While some experts say the island is still very fragile and uninhabitable, climate change specialist Ainun Nishat is of the opinion that people can live here if the embankment is heightened to 6.5 to 7 meters. However, he doesn't think that farming is possible on the island.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Rohingya fear cyclone, drowning
The refugees fear they could die as a result of a cyclone if they are forcibly moved to the island. Many of their children could drown in the sea, they say.
Image: DW/A. Islam
Will Rohingya move there?
While the island is almost ready to host Rohingya refugees, the government has yet to make a decision on transferring them to it. Several sources say the relocation could take place in November. The Bangladeshi government has hinted it might have to force the refugees to go there if no one chooses to leave the Cox's Bazar's refugee settlements.
