findings i: movement restrictions in bangladesh 29 “There was freedom for us when we first arrived here,” said Samira, a 43-year-old Rohingya woman, “then, the army was replaced with the police, the fences were set up around the camp, and the markets within the camp were all demolished, which started causing so many problems for us.” 53 Restrictions in Comparison to Myanmar In discussing the conditions in the camps, many respondents compared their current situation to the situation in Myanmar prior to the genocidal violence in 2017. Many reported feeling like the living situation in the camps has deteriorated to the extent that the conditions are worse than those they were experiencing previously in Myanmar. Respondents staunchly emphasised that APBn persecution and violence in Bangladesh is the same as or worse than the persecution perpetrated by the Myanmar Military and Rakhine civilians in Rakhine State. Respondents reported ubiquitous extortion, violence, threats, forced labour, false accusations, arbitrary arrest, and sexual violence at the hands of police. In addition to the violence and extortion from police, respondents also saw similarities between the restrictions on Rohingya daily life in the camps and the restrictions that they faced in Myanmar–often expressing that the restrictions on their basic rights in the camps were similar to or worse than the systemic human rights violations experienced in Myanmar. They specifically cited restrictions on movement, livelihoods, educa- Respondents staunchly emphasised that APBn persecution and violence in Bangladesh is the same as or worse than the persecution perpetrated by the Myanmar Military and Rakhine civilians in Rakhine State. tion, the enforcement of curfews, the inability to meet in groups or hold cultural events, substandard housing, and crowded conditions in the camp as being worse in the Bangladesh camps than previously in Myanmar. This sentiment was supported by a majority of survey respondents, 65 percent of whom reported that they believe the restrictions on movement they are facing now in Bangladesh are worse than those they experienced previously in Myanmar. “In Myanmar, we were kept underprivileged by the government,” said Safika, a 35-year-old Rohingya woman. “Our children didn’t have a chance to study. We weren’t allowed to have income sources, neither did we have freedom of movement, and we couldn’t live there peacefully. We are going through the same discrimination and violence here as well. Our children are not allowed to study. We aren’t allowed to do any business or have income sources. If innocent people sit together to chat with one another, the police accuse them of being criminals, and they are imprisoned after being tortured. I think the government has imposed these restrictions and violence to make our life so miserable that we return to our country the same way we fled here.”54 53 54 Interview C8EF Interview C16F