Rohingya are now facing a killer even deadlier than the Myanmar military: The Covid-19 epidemic which will decimate the largest refugee camp in the world

My piece in the @DhakaTribune

https://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/2020/04/12/covid-19-will-decimate-the-rohingya-refugee-camps

Short thread: 1/8

The Rohingya are living in the extreme dense and squalid conditions with more than 100,000 people per square mile, with virtually no space to isolate or quarantine anyone. Once it appears, containing the disease will be virtually impossible. 2/8

With no space even to limit human-to-human contact to slow down the spread. Very limited scope for proper hygiene in the public spaces, very limited availability of medical supplies -- masks, disinfectant gels, PPE, ventilators etc are effectively out of the question. 3/8

As heartbreaking as it may have been, it was the right thing to put Cox’s Bazar in complete lockdown. Such extreme measures can hinder the transmission of the disease, and it is absolutely imperative that the virus is pre-empted from making its way into the Rohingya camps. 4/8

If the virus gets into Cox’s Bazar, virtually everyone in those camps is guaranteed to get it, and as many as 20% of those who get it are likely to die.

We are talking 200,000 people!!!

5/8

In such a scenario, will the Rohingya stay put in Cox’s Bazar and wait for their families to be decimated?

Would you stay put in these conditions?

What if they start fleeing Cox’s Bazar carrying the virus?

What does that mean for the rest of Bangladesh?
6/8

Dhaka must therefore devote every resource it has available (including resources from UN) to ensure the disease does not reach the camps. It must contain the few dozen cases and prevent them from becoming more than 1,000.

If we get to 10,000, the battle will be lost. 7/8

Dhaka cannot approach the political tactics of this by allowing the situation to get worse so that the population gets on board with harsh measures before it goes to full lockdown.

Bangladesh cannot afford that.

It must act NOW. 8/8