Rohingya refugees in Delhi extend hand to flood victims

By Faruk Zorlu

ANKARA

Football players from Rohingya refugee camps in Delhi extended hand to flood victims in the southern Indian state of Kerala even if they lead a challenging life.

The Shine Star FC football club, which consist of students and daily-wage laborers, handed over relief fund to Kerala flood Victims through the Human Welfare Foundation, which has been engaging with the refugee community for years.

Rohingya refugee football players went door-to-door in the camp and collected 40,000 Indian rupee ($563) for Kerala flood victims.

The club, which was formed in 2015, mainly participates in tournaments with other teams of refugees held in cooperation with the UNHCR refugee agency.

At least 445 people were killed in floods and landslides in the Indian state of Kerala, according to local media.

“Though our camp is in Delhi we receive a lot of help from Kerala. The love and support Kerala people show us will always be in our memory.

“We pray for them and convey our support with whatever little help we could do,” Rohingya Shine Star Football Club manager Muhammed Shihad said in a press release.

Triggered by torrential monsoon rains, the floods and landslides have affected 800,000 people, while more than 5,600 people were shifted to relief camps.

Stressing the importance of club’s contribution, Human Welfare Foundation CEO Noufal PK said: "Whatever be the amount of contribution the message Shine Star FC shares to the world is priceless. Therefore this contribution is very special [...].”

Recent floods and landslides caused $3 billion worth of losses, submerging 130,000 houses and destroying land.

Thousands of people were left homeless because of the floods.

According to the UNHCR refugee agency, there were 17,500 registered Rohingya refugees and asylum-seekers in India as of July 2018.

- Nearly 24,000 Rohingya killed

In a report, the UNHCR refugee agency said nearly 170,000 Rohingya likely fled Myanmar in 2012 alone.

Since Aug. 25, 2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state forces, according to the Ontario International Development Agency (OIDA).

In a recent report, Forced Migration of Rohingya: The Untold Experience, the OIDA raised the estimated number of murdered Rohingya to 23,962 (± 881) from a Doctors Without Borders figure of 9,400.

More than 34,000 Rohingya were also thrown into fires, while over 114,000 others were beaten, the OIDA report said, adding that 17,718 (±780) Rohingya women and girls were raped by Myanmar’s army and police. Over 115,000 Rohingya houses were also burned down and 113,000 others vandalized, it added.

According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly children and women, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community.

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