First Prize, Camp Life Category. MRK Palash.

First Prize, Common Future Category, Saikat Mojumder.

Second Prize, Camp Life Category, M. Rakibul Hasan

Second Prize, Common Future Category, Jashim Salam

Third Prize, Camp Life Category, Andrew Biraj.

Third Prize, Common Future Category, Kazi Arifur Rahman

Seven years ago a group of young Urdu-speakers claiming to be citizens of Bangladesh filed a petition to demand enrollment in the country’s list of voters.  The government challenged their request, but the High Court determined they are “citizens of Bangladesh and their residence in the Geneva Camp, Mohammedpur, is not a bar to be enrolled as voters.”  Five years later, in May 2008, a landmark decision in the Supreme Court restored the citizenship rights of the so-called Urdu-speaking refugees and stateless people (also known as Biharis, or stranded Pakistanis) who had languished in camps and ghettos since the emergence of Bangladesh in 1971. Since then, changes substantiating citizenship status have been few and far between. The goal now must be to make ready and steady progress toward fully integrating the population into the larger society.

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Health is one of the basic rights of the citizens of a country. Bangladesh is the eighth most populous country in the world with a population of about 140 million. Associated with the country’s dramatic demographic challenges are its dramatic increases in urban population, especially those living in slums. Geneva camp and other Urdu-speaking camps are  similar to the various urban slums. Being slum dwellers, the Urdu-speaking community is composed of various social and professional groups. The members of the community are seemingly exposed to STI and HIV/AIDS infections because of ignorance, lack of awareness and access to treatment and counselling and other preventive measures. There is only one Maternal and Child Health and Reproductive Health clinic in Geneva Camp run by Al-Falah Bangladesh. No clinic has been established in the remaining 115 camps.

The Government of Bangladesh has been attaching priority to the development of mother and child health care – focusing particularly on reproductive health issues. According to the demographics of Bangladesh, women die every hour due to problems related to pregnancy and child birth and 50 percent of babies are born with low birth weight. These are the reasons for high infant and maternal mortality rates in Bangladesh, where about 57.45 infants die out of 1000 live births. Similarly, the under five-child mortality rate is 116 per 1000 live birth and maternal mortality in the country is high – 400 deaths per 100,000 live births.

“One way Bangladesh can help ensure full integration of formerly stateless persons is to identify gaps and then work to close them.” “The Al-Falah Bangladesh photo contest is an important step in the right direction.”

courtesy UNHCR/GMB Akash

Water and sanitation are extremely inadequate in every camp. Geneva camp is one of the largest camps amongst the 116 camps. It is located in Dhaka and situated in one hundred twenty three thousand square feet area. Yet within this area, about twenty thousand people live. Only 250 poorly maintained toilets are available for twenty two thousand people and most without a functioning lock even. The absence of clean water particularly affects children; women and girls are also proned to acquiring urinary track infections. Poverty and lack of education compounds hygiene problems.

Al-Falah Bangladesh is registered with the Directorate of Family Planning and NGO Affairs Bureau, Government of Bangladesh. It has been working since 1980 for the betterment of Urdu-speaking camp dwellers.  The vision of the organisation is for the urdu-speaking community to take part equally and with dignity in national life as citizens of Bangladesh. At an organisational level, Al-Falah Bangladesh aims to increase the quality of life of urdu-speakers and improve their access to education, skill, health, economic opportunities and cultural activities.

courtesy UNHCR/GMB Akash