SUSTAINING FAMILY TIES
ACROSS BORDERS
The frequency of communication
between refugees and their relatives
in Myanmar tends to diminish over
time. Among the registered refugees
with family still in Myanmar, 89
percent never communicate with
their relatives, compared to 47 percent
of the newly arrived population
with family in Myanmar (figure 20).
Given that family communication is
a common way for people to learn
the status of remaining properties
and hear about the security situation
in their villages, those who have lost
touch have less access to information
about home.
Communication with relatives in
third countries varies. Many families
have stayed in touch by relying on
international calling plans in earlier
times, and more recently by using
messaging platforms such as IMO and
WhatsApp. One respondent reported
having regular contact with a family
member who moved overseas in 1965.
But the challenges of long-distance
communication are now exacerbated
by restrictions on phone and internet
access in the camps as well as the
internet shutdown in Rakhine State
(figure 21).
Figure 20. Frequency of communication
w ith relatives in Myanmar
AMONG NEWLY ARRIVED POPULATION
47%
26%
Never
21%
Less than Every
every few
few
months months
7%
5%
5%
Every
month
Every
week
Don’t
know
4%
2%
4%
Every
month
Every
week
Don’t
know
1%
Every
day
AMONG REGISTERED POPULATION
89%
7%
Never
9%
Less than Every
every few
few
months months
0%
Every
day
n = 859
With an internet shutdow n in eff ect, parents
sometimes take risks to make calls to children overseas
Since 2019, communication restrictions have been in effect on both sides of the Myanmar-Bangladesh border as part of a
security crackdown. Interviewees recounted the pain of failing to receive timely family information about the safety and
health of their relatives in other countries. Some were not notified about a loved one’s death or the birth of a grandchild until
months later.
A mother of 10 children, age 48, described the risks she takes by calling her children abroad, who departed Myanmar by boat
as minors several years before the parents were displaced to Bangladesh. She and her husband purchased a SIM card illegally
and feared that it could be confiscated along with their mobile phone. “With the network shutdown it is very difficult to talk
to our two daughters. Sometimes we have to go up the hill to get a signal…We couldn’t talk at all for a while, but we got an
MPT [a Myanmar provider] SIM card. We are afraid to use it, but we need to contact them.”
The impact of communication restrictions on the straining of family ties has gendered implications. During the present
internet shutdown, and because of gaps in network coverage previously, internet connections are mainly available at
locations away from people’s shelters. These include areas near the camp perimeter, on hilltops, or provided by host
community members for a fee. Women face greater barriers accessing these locations.
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