Turkish NGO provides aid to over 1 million Rohingya

By Zeynep Rakipoglu

ISTANBUL

The Istanbul-based Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) has provided aid for over one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh over the past year.

According to a statement by the IHH, the aid agency helped 1,232,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh, including some 800,000, mostly children and women, who fled Myanmar when Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community since August, 2017.

The statement said since 1996, the IHH has been providing food, water, shelter, personal care items and clothing as well as health and rehabilitation facilities to Rohingya families in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and India.

The IHH built 7,432 bamboo housing units equipped with solar panels with the intent to build 5,568 more, it said.

The housing units they have built were displayed as a model by the UN’s International Migration Organization (IMO) to other non-governmental organizations working for humanitarian aid in the area, it added.

Healthcare, access to clean water

On the first days of the crisis last year, the IHH opened three temporary health centers in Myanmar and Bangladesh, and helped with the treatment and logistics of 45 injured Rohingyas.

The health centers conducted check-ups on a total of 109,750 people since their establishment.

Also, access to clean water was provided through 113 wells, 10 deep water wells -- each with a capacity of five liters --, and 305 lavatories.

The statement went on to say that five rehabilitation centers were built for children and orphans living in camps in Cox’s Bazar.

The centers currently provide shelter, education, health, and nourishment for 1,094 children, 94 of which are orphans. An additional 678 children are given regular support within the organization’s orphan sponsorship program.

The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.

The UN documented mass gang rapes, killings -- including of infants and young children -- brutal beatings, and disappearances committed by Myanmar state forces. In its report, UN investigators said such violations may have constituted crimes against humanity.