“An Island Jail in the Middle of the Sea” Bangladesh’s Relocation of Rohingya Refugees to Bhasan Char The Bangladesh government has relocated nearly 20,000 Rohingya to the remote island of Bhasan Char from the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar where nearly one million Rohingya refugees live after fleeing ethnic cleansing in Myanmar. Reneging on promises that it would wait for an assessment by independent humanitarian and technical experts, Bangladesh has now presented the United Nations and international donors with a fait accompli, pressing them to provide humanitarian services to the refugees on Bhasan Char without a chance to evaluate emergency preparedness, habitability, and safety. Based on interviews with 167 refugees as well as with humanitarian experts, “An Island Jail in the Middle of the Sea” finds that many refugees were brought to the island without full informed consent and with no ability to leave. Refugees report dangerously inadequate health care, onerous restrictions on movement, food shortages, few education and livelihood opportunities, and abuses by security forces. The approaching monsoon season poses a grave risk that the refugees, as well as Bangladeshi officials and volunteers, could end up confined on the remote island in the middle of cyclone-prone waters without sufficient food, water, or medical care when weather conditions limit travel to the mainland. The UN and concerned governments should press Bangladesh to ensure that refugees and others are not at risk on the island, that refugee rights are respected, and that security forces are held to account for abuses. The government should follow through on its promises for an independent technical assessment of the habitability and emergency preparedness of the island and make any necessary adjustments, including returning refugees to Cox’s Bazar if it is deemed unsafe or unsustainable. In the meantime, any refugees who wish to return to Cox’s Bazar should be allowed to do so immediately. hrw.org (above) Rohingya refugees prepare to board a ship as they move to Bhasan Char island, Bangladesh, on December 29, 2020. © 2020 Kazi Salahuddin Razu/ NurPhoto via Getty Images (front cover) Bangladeshi navy sailors intake Rohingya refugees as they disembark from a navy vessel bringing them to Bhasan Char island in Bangladesh, December 29, 2020. © 2020 KM Asad/ LightRocket via Getty Images