Read the first-hand account of a former Rohingya refugee who lived in a refugee camp for 18 years. In 1991, Rafique, his parents and his baby sister, fled Myanmar with nothing but the clothes on their backs. They now live peacefully in New Zealand but his experience still haunts him.

***Trigger warning: Mentions violence and sexual abuse***

I have experienced injustice in ways a human never should.

My name is Rafique and I am from Rakhine State in Myanmar-formerly Burma. In 1991, at the age of ten, I fled my country due to the ethnic and religious persecutions of the Burmese Government.

My father was a farmer—he grew rice and wheat and raised goats and cattle. My mother helped him and looked after my sister who was only six months old at that time. We are Rohingya—a minority people group.

Armed conflict between minority groups and the government’s military forces have gone on for decades. Before we fled the country, we lived under heavy restrictions. We weren’t welcome to go to school, worship at religious centres and we weren’t allowed to get married.

The Rohingya refugee crisis was once described as the "fastest-growing refugee emergency in the world" by the UNHCR.

Rohingya girls were sexually abused by soldiers, there were murders, looting, and the Rohingya’s were economically crippled.

A day I will never forget, was when the Burmese Government confiscated our land. They said, “This is not your land, you can’t grow crops here”. Our house was looted and burnt to the ground. They told us, “You’re not Burmese, you have to leave the country”.

My family and I escaped with nothing. After our house was left in ashes, we fled to Bangladesh on a small, wooden boat. All we had with us was rice, chicken curry, and the clothes on our backs.

We travelled for two hours and crossed the river to Bangladesh, where we stopped. We built a hut with bamboo and plastics we found near Teknaf. We stayed there for a year, then the Bangladeshi Government told us to move to the Kutupalong refugee camp. Kutupalong is near Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, which is now the biggest refugee camp in the world, home to about one million refugees.

Map of where Rafique travelled to.

When we arrived at the Kutupalong refugee camp, it was crowded, dirty, unsanitary, unhealthy and everyone was malnourished. We were living in a little 7.2sqm hut made of bamboo. Some people slept on mats, but the poorest slept on the ground. Whenever a cyclone or the monsoon rains came, our huts were ripped apart.

In the camp we were not allowed to go out, we couldn’t play in open spaces, we weren’t allowed an education and we didn’t have proper food or support. The only food we got was lentils, rice, salt and oil. I remember waiting in line for two to three hours just to get medicine.

The living conditions were very poor.

We spent seven years in the Kutupalong camp. Then we moved to the Nayapara refugee camp by rickshaw. In 2006, resettlement became an option for the Rohingya. In 2009, my family and I were some of the few fortunate enough to make it to New Zealand.

I spent 18 years of my life experiencing ethnic marginalisation and persecution as a refugee.

"We were living in a little 7.2sqm hut made of bamboo," says Rafique.

Some of my family and friends are still at the camps. The situation is still bad in Bangladesh. There are currently around 855,000 Rohingya refugees in 34 refugees camps in Bangladesh.

Now, the Bangladeshi Government has allowed aid agencies like Tearfund to work there so the situation is better than it once was. I am so thankful for Tearfund who work with my people.

I am just fortunate that I live in New Zealand with my family and after many years can finally live in freedom.

Covid-19 Refugee Crisis Appeal

The world’s most vulnerable communities are now bracing themselves for the onslaught of Covid-19. Will you help save lives?

Learn More

World Mental Health Day: What war, natural disasters and Covid-19 lockdowns have in common

Friday, 08 October 2021 — Carl Adams

Over the past 18 months, we have faced significant uncertainty as Covid-19 unleashed itself on communities at home and the world over. As a humanitarian worker, I’ve responded to people’s needs following earthquakes, flooding, tsunami and horrific acts of genocide. There are some striking similarities between these crises and Covid-19 lockdowns from a mental health perspective.

Time to be kind to Afghans

Tuesday, 14 September 2021 — Josie Pagani

Council for International Development director Josie Pagani calls the withdrawal from Afghanistan a disaster, and says the New Zealand Government should take in a thousand Afghan refugees in this year’s refugee quota. She also says we need to back the offer Turkey made to the Afghan Government to run chartered evacuation and aid flights through Kabul airport.

Coronavirus and hunger will adversely impact poor children NZ aid agencies warn

Tuesday, 14 July 2020 — Tearfund New Zealand

Thirteen NZ aid organisations are warning that children in low-income countries will be the most affected by the global pandemic and hunger, and they are encouraging Kiwis to help resource their global neighbours to deal effectively with the situation. The release today of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World by the UN has prompted the call to action.

A Decade in Ethical Fashion

Wednesday, 20 May 2020 — Ally Turner

Think back 10 years and picture your wardrobe. Choker chains were back in business, cardigans had moved from your nana’s wardrobe to your own and jeggings were rearing their somewhat questionable head. While those trends have come and gone, another trend that has been growing over that time has been towards ethics in the fashion industry. On day one of this series, Ally Turner from Baptist World Aid Australia is here to tell us more about what brought about that change... read on!

Covid 19 and Refugees – When Self-Isolation is a Privilege

Tuesday, 07 April 2020 — Victoria Hanna

There are an estimated 1.7 billion people around the world are in isolation today. But what about the people that are unable to self-isolate? The homeless, the unwanted, the refugee. What will happen to them?

A Biblical Lens on Mozambique

Friday, 17 May 2019 — Sean du Toit

When disasters like the Mozambique cyclones strike, we can find ourselves feeling overwhelmed and disheartened by the scale of human suffering. Our Restore cause is based on the biblical belief that we are called to respond with compassion to those in need and that we have a duty to seek 'shalom' in this world. Often, this can seem like a discouraging and overwhelming mission – but we believe that we are called to work towards the redemption of this world here and now. We also believe that ultimately, we will see redemption completed through Jesus.

My experience living in a refugee camp – “I still get nightmares”

Covid-19 Refugee Crisis Appeal

The world’s most vulnerable communities are now bracing themselves for the onslaught of Covid-19. Will you help save lives?

Related posts

World Mental Health Day: What war, natural disasters and Covid-19 lockdowns have in common

Time to be kind to Afghans

Coronavirus and hunger will adversely impact poor children NZ aid agencies warn

A Decade in Ethical Fashion

Covid 19 and Refugees – When Self-Isolation is a Privilege

A Biblical Lens on Mozambique

Recent posts

Coal, oil and gas, oh my! But what about fashion? Here's what happened at COP26

How does sponsorship help a child’s mental development?

Four top tips for shopping consciously this Christmas

The gift of discovering the true meaning of Christmas