Many of the relocations that began in May 2020 were involuntary. Refugees reported threats of detention, forced repatriation to Myanmar, or separation from family if they refused.
A major human rights report released in January has renewed urgent calls for Bangladesh to shut down the Bhasan Char refugee camp and end what investigators describe as the mass arbitrary detention of tens of thousands of Rohingya genocide survivors. The 36-page document from Fortify Rights, titled “Like Prisoners,” is based on more than 100 interviews conducted between May 2020 and October 2025.
Fortify Rights’ new report highlights arbitrary detention and calls for freedom of movement for the refugees. It concludes that conditions on the remote silt island in the Bay of Bengal amount to de facto imprisonment in violation of Bangladesh’s own constitution and international law.
As of December 2025, Bangladesh authorities and the UN reported roughly 34,500 Rohingya living on Bhasan Char, part of a broader population of over one million Rohingya refugees hosted in the country since the 2017 exodus from Myanmar. The island camp was conceived under former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as a way to decongest the overcrowded Cox’s Bazar camps.
What began as a purported humanitarian relocation project has, according to the report, become a site of systematic “warehousing” – prolonged confinement without freedom of movement, livelihoods, or realistic prospects for return.
Barbed Wire, Naval Guards, and a Sea That Traps
Refugees describe Bhasan Char as encircled by the sea, barbed-wire fencing, watchtowers, CCTV cameras, and 24-hour naval patrols. One 38-year-old man told investigators in July 2024: “Currently, we feel as though we are confined here, like prisoners.” A 43-year-old woman added: “We are not able to go and see our relatives in the mainland camp. There are two kinds of fencing for us: one is the sea and the other is the barbed-wire fencing… I feel like I am in a prison now.”
A 25-year-old man compared the camp to “a chicken cage,” warning that in a cyclone or flood the barbed wire would trap residents rather than protect them. Escape attempts have been dangerous and often punished. In one 2021 incident, a boat carrying 41 people attempting to reach the mainland capsized; at least 25 were reported dead or missing. Survivors who reached land were detained, imprisoned for months, and forced to pay heavy fines.
Coerced Relocation and Broken Promises
Many of the relocations that began in May 2020 were involuntary. Refugees reported threats of detention, forced repatriation to Myanmar, or separation from family if they refused. Officials and Rohingya camp leaders (majhis) allegedly compiled lists under pressure, promising jobs, livestock, monthly cash allowances, and priority for third-country resettlement – promises that were never fulfilled. One woman recounted: “They threatened my husband… Because of that, my husband begged me and our children to agree [to move].”
Once on the island, leaving requires a bureaucratic exit pass that can take weeks or months, often involving bribes of several hundred taka to majhis and officials. Family emergencies – funerals, critical illnesses – frequently go unaddressed. A 46-year-old volunteer said: “Even after the death of our parents, we are not able to leave Bhasan Char in time to see them.”
UNHCR Role and International Criticism
In October 2021, UNHCR signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bangladeshi government to provide services on Bhasan Char. Critics, including former UN staff who spoke anonymously, argued the agency legitimised confinement rather than insisting on freedom of movement as a precondition. The MoU, leaked by a journalist and later translated into Rohingya by Fortify Rights, explicitly allowed movement off the island only under government-approved conditions.
Fortify Rights director John Quinley stated: “Bhasan Char should never have been considered an appropriate place for refugees. Being a refugee is not a crime, yet Rohingya from Myanmar have been treated as if it were. The island, in practice, functions more like a penal colony – that is neither lawful nor humane.”
Policy Shift Under Interim Government
The ousting of Sheikh Hasina in August 2024 and the establishment of an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus have opened a window for change. In October 2025, Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Mizanur Rahman told Fortify Rights: “The government is not interested in continuing the Bhasan Char project.” He has publicly called it “a failed project” and acknowledged that conditions constitute “a kind of confinement.”
Despite these statements, no concrete timetable for closure has been announced. National elections are scheduled for February 2026, and advocates are pressing the next elected government to make permanent closure a priority.
Broader Context and Urgent Recommendations
Bhasan Char is not the only site of restriction. Rohingya in Cox’s Bazar also face severe limits on movement, work, and formal education. Repatriation to Myanmar remains impossible amid ongoing conflict and the absence of citizenship or safety guarantees. Donor fatigue has led to funding shortfalls, reduced food rations, and cuts to services.
Fortify Rights recommends that Bangladesh immediately close Bhasan Char, allow voluntary relocation to the mainland, grant all Rohingya freedom of movement and the right to work, and ratify the 1951 Refugee Convention. It also calls on the UN to prioritise human rights monitoring over access, and on the international community to support accountability for crimes in Myanmar.
The report’s central message is stark: eight years after the 2017 genocide drove nearly a million people into Bangladesh, policies of containment continue to inflict new harm. As one refugee summarised the sentiment shared by many: “We escaped genocide hoping for protection, not another life surrounded by restrictions.”
