Rohingyas in Bangladesh: Owning Rohingya Identity in Disowning Spaces
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ROHINGYAS IN BANGLADESH: OWNING ROHINGYA IDENTITY IN DISOWNING SPACES ISHRAT ZAKIA SULTANA A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN SOCIOLOGY YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO MARCH 2019 © Ishrat Zakia Sultana, 2019 ABSTRACT This dissertation focuses on Rohingya people, with a special emphasis on Rohingya youth and young adults, and how they construct their identities. While Rohingya ethnic identity is deeply rooted in Burma, it is influenced by how they grow up and reach adulthood within a protracted situation in Bangladesh. Many Rohingya youth and young adults find it complicated to define who they are because they belong to a place, Burma, that does not consider them “citizens,” and they reside in a place, Bangladesh, that never recognizes them as “residents.” The uncertainty around Rohingya identity raises several questions: How does the experience of displacement and refugeeness in Bangladesh shape identity among Rohingya people, particularly among the youth and young adults? What is Rohingya identity? In what ways do they retain their Rohingya identity in the context of their non-citizen status in Bangladesh? While they are stateless, how are the social rights of citizenship experienced by Rohingya people? Using ethnographic methods, I spent nine months in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, between 2014 and 2016 to collect data for this research. I interviewed 44 Rohingya people. Rohingyas first arrived in Bangladesh in 1978. After that, many Rohingya people were born and/or raised in Bangladeshi refugee camps, and have never left, while others were forcefully repatriated by Bangladeshi government and then forced to return to Bangladesh again by the Burmese government during 1992-1993 (Abrar, 1995; Pittaway, 2008; Loescher & Milner, 2008; Ullah, 2011; Murshid, 2014). The findings of my research show that due to living in oppressive conditions, uncertainty, and the lack of an appropriate social environment, Rohingya people struggle with forming their identity. Their liminality, statelessness, and lack of rights have created an unsettled and hybrid form of identity for many youth and youth adults living within and outside the refugee camps. In this dissertation, I first describe the lives of Rohingya refugees, then I examine individual constructions of identity and how their sense of belonging is influenced by their refugeeness and lack of legal citizenship. Rohingya people’s struggle with identity formation can only be resolved when the Rohingya crisis comes to an end. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am deeply indebted to many people whose support, encouragement and involvement have made the completion of this dissertation possible. At first, I would like to thank my dissertation committee: Dr. Ann H. Kim, Dr. Amber Gazso, and Dr. Lawrence Lam. I appreciate the generous support I received from my committee throughout the journey of writing my dissertation. I could not ask for a more generous and wonderful committee. My heartfelt thanks to Ann, my supervisor, whose knowledge, expertise, mentorship and kindness helped me keep moving ahead. Her highly organized and professional working style, demands of high standards and compassion played a key role in the successful completion of my work. She taught me how to think more deeply about my research and improve my writing. I am also thankful to Amber and Larry, my committee members, whose insightful direction, motivation and good humor made me feel confident. They were critical, yet made sure that I could follow their suggestions with greater ease. Each email, personal meeting or phone conversation with them ended with their word of inspiration, which was much needed. Much appreciation to the external examiner Dr. Mustafa Koc, internal member Dr. Jennifer Hyndman, and the chair Dr. Guida Man for graciously agreeing to serve as examiners. Their insightful questions, comments and suggestions were invaluable for this dissertation. I want to thank my family for believing that I would be able to finish what I started. I was apart from them for the purpose of my research, yet I felt to be a part of them because of their constant support, encouragement, unconditional love and care. My mother, who was the key source of my inspiration, always enquired about the progress I made and the challenges I faced. She was perhaps the only person outside the academia who was so much enthusiastic about my iii research not just by enquiring about my study but by providing latest information from media on Rohingya issue and offering valuable advices to overcome the challenges. This acknowledgment would remain incomplete if I do not express my heartfelt thanks to my research participants at Ukhia and Teknaf in Bangladesh. At the beginning of my fieldwork, while I was unsure how to ask the questions of identity and citizenship to a group of oppressed people who have been struggling to survive, their welcoming attitude and interest, and voluntary participation in my study made my work easier. Hearing their voice and getting involved in their everyday works gave me a chance to know Rohingya people in Bangladesh very closely, and develop an understanding on the dimensions of vulnerability of stateless people. I am grateful to all of my research participants for their time and trust in me. I believe I have done justice to them. The pages of my dissertation are dedicated to them. There are others, at the Graduate Program in Sociology at York University, Canada, and my friends and relatives in Bangladesh, whose continuous support and motivation were much helpful in my long journey of writing my dissertation. I cannot list all the names here, but they are always in my mind for their significant contribution to accomplish my research. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………................ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………………………iii LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………….........vii LIST OF MAPS……………………………………………………………………………........viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS………………………………………………………………..…...ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION………………………………….……………………………...1 Research Question………………………………………….………………………….….1 CHAPTER 2. THE ROHINGYA: ORIGIN AND GEOPOLITICAL OVERVIEW…….…..…10 Exclusionary Citizenship Act…………………………………………………….……..12 Religious Prejudice and Bigotry……………………………………………….………..15 Denial of Existence…………………………………………………………….…….….17 Consistent Persecution in Burma…... …………………….……………………….……18 The Role of UNHCR…………………………………………………………….…..….19 CHAPTER 3. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK………….…………….………….…………..22 The Concepts of Identity and Self……………………………………………….………22 Symbolic Interactionist Perspectives in Application…………………….………26 Political Theorization of Statelessness………….……….……….…………..…………..31 Citizenship and Identity………..………………………………………………….……..34 Refugee Youth and Young Adults…………….…………………………….….…….….40 CHAPTER 4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY……..…….…………….………….…………..46 Methodology………………...………………………………………………….…….….46 Researching Refugee Youth and Young Adults Using Ethnographic Approach…..……49 Gaining Entry………..…………………………………………………….……..52 Site Selection and Maps………………………………………………….………53 Recruitment and Sampling……………………………………………….………57 Data Collection…………….…………………………………………….………50 Analysis Strategy…………..…………………………………………….………63 Ethical Considerations and Challenges……………………………………….….………66 Reflexivity, Standpoint, and Position……………………………………………………71 CHAPTER 5. STATELESS LIVES…………………………………………………….……….77 History and Description of Rohingya Refugee Camps………………………………… 77 Unregistered Camps: World’s Largest Camp, a Taal? ……………………….…80 Registered Camps: Supported by the Government and the UNHCR……………83 Rohingya Life: A Story of Inequality and Stratification…………………..…….………86 Unregistered Rohingyas: Helplessness Caused by Inequality……….………..…86 The Beginning…………………………………….………….….……….87 Living Conditions………………………………….…………….………89 Hunger, a Common Problem……………….…….….……………..……98 Health and Hygiene………………………………….………….………102 v Education………………………………………….…………….……...104 Employment and Freedom of Movement………..………..…….……...108 Safety……………... ………………………….…..…………….……...113 Registered Rohingyas: Stratification Ensures Better Conditions………………115 Living Conditions………………………………….…………….……..115 Free Food Card…………………………………….…………….……..117 Health…………………………...………………….…………….……..119 Education……………….………………………….…………….……..122 Employment and Free Movement………………….…………….…….124 The People of the UNHCR………………………...…………….……..126 The Registration System: A Means of Stratification………………………………..….127 CHAPTER 6. BECOMING ROHINGYA AND COMMUNITY BUILDING EFFORTS……130 Becoming Rohingya: Being a Rohingya and/or a Burmese and/or a Bangladeshi….…131 Rohingya in the Context of Life in Burma………..………………….……...…131 Rohingya in the Context of Life in Bangladesh………..……………………….139 Becoming Rohingya: Family, Language, Food and Clothing, and Gender Roles……...146 Family Efforts……………….……………………….…….…………….……..146 Language………………….…….………………………….……………..…….150 Food and Clothing…………………...…………………….…………….……..160 Gender Roles…….…………….………………………….…………….………162 Becoming Rohingya: Community Building Efforts and Rohingya Agency…..……….166 Spreading Light of Education Amid the Darkness of Refugeeness…………….167 Voluntary Blood Donation Project………….……………………...…………..168 Advocacy and Negotiations……………………………….…………….……...169 CHAPTER 7. IDENTITY AND CITIZENSHIP OF ROHINGYA PEOPLE………………….172 Hybrid Identity………………..….…….………………………….……………..……..173 Legal Citizenship……………………….………………………….………….….…….179 Social Citizenship…………………...….………………………….…….……….…….184