Rohingya refugee crisis Internews Assessment – September 2017 Background Nearly 300,000 members of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority have poured across the international border into Bangladesh since the end of August, fleeing ethnic/religious persecution and violence that erupted in the northwest Rahkine state. Hundreds have been killed, shot while trying to escape or drowning during the perilous journey across the Naf River, which separates the two countries. Desperate men, women and children, who have been walking for days braving gunfire, landmines and treacherous terrain to reach Bangladesh are spending nights in the open, unsure where to go or how to access medicine and food. The Bangladeshi government says it cannot afford to house and feed the new arrivals, which join an existing Rohingya refugee population estimated to be over 600,000 already. United Nations officials have warned that the number of displaced Rohingyas in Bangladesh could rise quickly to 800,000 as the conflict in northwest Myanmar escalates. A number of factors stand to exacerbate this crisis: • • • Insensitive and inflammatory reporting by some Bangladeshi news organizations, which threatens to turn local public opinion against the refugees and make it more difficult for Rohingya families to access assistance. Some Bangladeshi media outlets are describing families fleeing violence as intruders, illegal trespassers and worse. One such headline: “Rohingyas are entering like termites.” Such reporting dehumanizes refugees, feeds prejudice and violates the 'do no harm' principle of journalism. Rumors and misinformation. Images and videos circulating on social media are inflaming emotions in Bangladesh and the region but are difficult to verify. Some are old photos from outbursts of violence in Rakhine in 2011 and 2012. Some are from other conflict spots like Sudan and Mali. There is also a flood of new visuals that portray the brutality of the crisis in Rakhine. There are rumors and lies circulating within the Rohingya camps as well, prompting refugees to take unnecessary and potentially fatal risks. There appears to be little or no attempt by mainstream Bangladeshi news organizations to verify and fact-check the material, a situation that threatens to compound the Rakhine crisis and spark fresh tensions between Muslim and Buddhist communities in Bangladesh. Threat of violent extremism. The possibility of radicalization is rising among disgruntled Rohingya youth who have seen their community marginalized and persecuted in Rakhine for decades. The emergence of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), an armed group which says it is fighting for Rohingya rights, has become a magnet for young Rohingyas looking to strike back at the Myanmar army. Transnational jihadist networks like ISIS and al-Qaeda could move to take advantage.