Rohingyas’ Relentless Struggle To Overcome Barriers To Education
Saifullah Muhammad works full-time as a community builder in Canada while also pursuing a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Waterloo.
Muhammad fled a cycle of persecution in his home of Burma’s Rakhine state with his parents in 1991.
He and thousands of refugees took shelter in Bangladesh, which is currently home to nearly 1.2 million Rohingya Muslims, most of whom fled a genocidal military crackdown in August 2017.
Like them, Muhammad grew up in congested Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh’s southern district of Cox’s Bazar as a member of a stateless community.
He managed to leave the camps, get into high school and later pursue an honors degree in Bangladesh, he told Anadolu Agency.
Muhammad earned a scholarship to attend Chiang Mai University in northern Thailand.
Today, Bangladesh’s government has put barriers to education for Rohingya refugees.
According to Human Rights Watch, they are not allowed to seek education outside of the camps.
Inside, UN humanitarian organizations and NGOS are barred from providing Rohingya children with any formal, accredited education.