III. Responses by the Former Government of Bangladesh and the U.N. Refugee Agency 54 torture, extortion, and other violations against Rohingya refugees by the APBn dating back to 2022. Fortify Rights found that APBn beat with batons, choked, and used other torture methods against Rohingya refugees to extort payments, sometimes amounting to the equivalent of thousands of U.S. dollars.267 Fortify Rights also documented how APBn detained Rohingya refugees, including children, in the camps.268 More recently, Fortify Rights documented an incident of sexual assault by APBn in 2024. A Rohingya woman described how three APBn officers entered her camp shelter and a senior-level officer sexually assaulted her in 2024. She said: “[The senior officer] was trying to hold my breast, so I said, ‘If you want to check my body, call a female member.’”269 The woman identified the officer responsible. On May 29, 2024, Fortify Rights submitted a 10-page memo to the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh outlining APBn abuses against refugees. At the time of writing, Fortify Rights has not received a response. In response to evidence of official wrongdoing published by Fortify Rights, Bangladesh government officials have claimed, without evidence, to have taken action. For example, Amir Zafar, a deputy inspector general at APBn, said during a media interview: “We take such allegations very seriously. If any police official gets involved in unethical activities, we take action after conducting an investigation.”270 Another APBn deputy inspector general, Molla Nazrul Islam, similarly told a media outlet, “We must investigate if we receive any formal complaint [of official wrongdoing].”271 At the time of writing, no available information indicates that APBn officers have been held accountable for human rights violations against Rohingya refugees in the camps in Cox’s Bazar District. Moreover, APBn is not mandated to take case reports or to investigate crimes, creating gaps in policing and access to justice for Rohingya refugees.272 Protection Concerns in the Jointly-Operated Transit Centers One of the few protection options available for Rohingya refugees is to relocate to one of several “transit centers” jointly operated by Bangladesh authorities and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)—the U.N. agency mandated to protect refugees. An emergency handbook published by UNHCR describes the transit centers as temporary shelters intended for a “period of two to five days.” UNCHR guidance says, “Given the short-term, temporary nature of transit centres, there is no longer-term standard. A transit centre should be designed for short stays ranging from two to five days on average, with a foreseen high turnover rate.”273 According to UNHCR, transit centers have doubled up as safe houses “used at the very onset of an emergency” by refugees facing threats until safer accommodation can be secured.274 The largest transit center opened in October 2017 following the Myanmar military-led attacks in Rakhine State and was meant to provide temporary shelter, immediate lifesaving assistance, and 267 Fortify Rights, “Bangladesh: Ensure Accountability for Police Corruption, Torture of Rohingya Refugees,” August 10, 2023, https://www.fortifyrights.org/bgd-inv-2023-08-10/. 268 Fortify Rights, “Bangladesh: Investigate Refugee-Beatings by Police, Lift Restrictions on Movement,” May 26, 2022, https://www.fortifyrights.org/bgd-inv-2022-05-26/. 269 Fortify Rights interview with A.Z.I., Cox’s Bazar District, Bangladesh, January 15, 2024. 270 Arafatul Islam, “Bangladesh Police Accused of Abusing Rohingya Refugees,” Deutsche Welle, August 19, 2023, https:// www.dw.com/en/bangladesh-police-accused-of-abusing-rohingya-refugees/a-66551647. 271 “Accountability for Police Corruption, Torture of Rohingyas Demanded,” New Age, August 11, 2023, https://www. newagebd.net/article/209169/accountability-for-police-corruption-torture-of-rohingyas-demanded. 272 The International Institute for Strategic Studies, “Competing Groups New Threat to Rohingya in Bangladesh,” December 2023, https://myanmar.iiss.org/analysis/rohingya. 273 UNHCR, “Emergency Handbook,” section on “Transit centres,” July 25, 2024, https://emergency.unhcr.org/emergencyassistance/shelter-camp-and-settlement/transit-centers/transit-centres. 274 Ibid.