COVID-19 in Cox’s Bazar E Sexual and Gender-Based Violence In October 2020, the Inter-Sector Coordination Group (‘ISCG’) Gender Hub outlined some of the gender-related impacts of the pandemic on Rohingya women and girls in Cox’s Bazar. 28 In general, the ISCG found that unpaid care work increased, access to services and entitlements were reduced and new constrictions on choice made Rohingya women reportedly less able to make independent decisions. Rohingya women and girls’ considerations of protection, health and maternal health, hygiene, education and communication have changed during the pandemic. 29 There have been changes to safety considerations with SGBV increasing due to the curtailing of services and women/girl-designated spaces. 30 Muhammad adds that domestic violence has also increased due to male partners staying at home for extended periods without paid work. Similarly, health has been affected as access to essential services such as sexual, reproductive and maternal health have been reduced. Health services considered non-essential, such as justice for SGBV survivors, have been halted during the pandemic. Additionally, menstrual material distribution has been delayed, and women and girls face challenges in washing their menstrual cloths appropriately. The lack of water storage systems and containers, compounded by wait times for water, has also put women and girls at greater risk of SBGV. 31 As occurred before the pandemic, toilets are overcrowded during the day, but women and girls risk harassment when accessing them at night. 32 In other aspects of daily life, less access to education uniquely impacts women and girls as men and boys’ education is prioritised, which has especially occurred during the pandemic. 33 Communication has changed as women and girls, who generally prefer to receive information through door-to-door visits and face-toface interactions with people, may have differential access to reliable information during the pandemic due to the reduction of in-person activities. 34 According to Muhammad, the situation of Rohingya girls and women has altered during the pandemic. For instance, he has been told that child marriages have become more frequent. Although he notes that many of these marriages have ended in divorce, the young women and girls are then sold to traffickers under the pretext of offering them a ‘better life’. On a related note, Muhammad has been told that drug trafficking, child kidnapping for ransom, sex slavery and labour exploitation are all escalating. In most cases, he doubts that law enforcement agencies adequately investigate the incidents. 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 Inter-Sector Coordination Group Gender Hub, ‘In the Shadows of the Pandemic: The Gendered Impact of COVID-19 on Rohingya and Host Communities’ Reliefweb (14 October 2020) <https://reliefweb.int/report/bangladesh/shadows-pandemic-gendered-impact-covid19-rohingya-and-host-communities-october>. ibid. United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund also anticipated a rise in SGBV; see Kettie Jean and Jason Miks, ‘Preventing a silent crisis for Rohingya women and girls during COVID-19 pandemic’ UNICEF (Web Page, 14 October 2020) <https://www.unicef.org/coronavirus/preventing-silent-crisis-rohingya-women-and-girlsduring-covid-19-pandemic>. ibid. ibid. ibid. ibid. 153