Rohingya refugees find safety after experiencing horror

“We were told that this is not your home,” Noura says about why she and her family fled Myanmar for Bangladesh.

Noura and her family are part of the more than 600,000 Rohingya people who have crossed to neighbouring Bangladesh in just three months. Most speak of witnessing horror and heartbreak.

They escaped with very little, undertaking a perilous and long journey. “It’s been a straight seven days. We tied our kids with our scarves. We couldn’t stop anywhere because there were no homes and there was nothing to eat.”

Noura says she saw boats being shot at during their crossing, witnessed 27 men from her village being shot and women being stripped and having “injustice” done to them.

Noura’s story is a similar one being told in the makeshift camps that have sprung up seemingly overnight and with very little in terms of basic necessities.

Food, water, health care, shelter: all are lacking.

But thanks to generous donations from Canadians, Humanitarian Coalition members are on the ground making a difference. Since the crisis began, they have provided safe spaces for women and children in need of rehabilitation and education, installed clean water pumps and distributed emergency food and hygiene.