Rights groups say there's a "climate of intense fear [8]" in the Bangladesh refugee camps [9] for Rohingya [10] who have fled Burma, following the killings of six refugees by police officers. Police officials say the men were involved in the murder of a local Bangladeshi man and killed in "crossfires"; critics say such language is often used to cover up extrajudicial killings [11]. Tensions with the host community in southern Bangladesh have risen over the last two years as the refugee emergency evolves [12] into a long-term crisis. This week, six UN rights watchdogs warned of escalating restrictions [13] in the refugee camps following the Bangladeshi man's murder, a failed attempt to kickstart refugee returns [14] to Burma, and a large protest marking two years since more than 700,000 Rohingya were forced out of Burma. What the watchdogs call a "sudden crackdown" includes a ban on mobile phone [15] services, suspensions of some NGOs working in the camps, and renewed discussions on surrounding the massive camps with barbed-wire fences [16]. Most Rohingya say they want to return to Burma if their safety and citizenship are guaranteed. But a UN rights probe released this week noted that little has changed in the Rohingya homeland of Rakhine State: "If anything, the situation of the Rohingya in Myanmar [Burma] is worse," investigators reported [17].
From The New Humanitarian [18], Sept. 20
