Unbroken : tales of the Rohingya women from the camps of Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh - Women's Participation Project (WPP) (IOM) /

Dhaka: International Organization for Migration, 2025

English

During the influx of 2017, the entire Rohingya community was tragically compelled to abandon their homeland. With uncertainty looming over their future, they fled to Bangladesh, where they established the largest refugee camp in Cox's Bazar. 51 per cent of the Rohingya community are female. In the camps, women and girls have were exposed to various risks, including gender-based violence. To address the issues of women and girls, IOM launched the Women's Participation Project (WPP), which strives to empower women, encouraging their active engagement in decision-making processes and amplifying their voices in camp governance through forming a women committee through Site Management and Site Development (SMSD). Through this initiative, women are not just participants; they are the strong network of sisterhood in the community, dedicated to uplifting their peers through invaluable information, spirited awareness campaigns, dynamic meetings, and the joyful sharing of their skills. In this book, we set out to uncover the inspiring stories of the women committee members of WPP, their childhoods, experiences in their homelands, and journeys to the camps. Within the camps, they face daily struggles for survival. Yet we witness the remarkable resilience of these women, who refuse to give up on life despite the overwhelming challenges they encounter. Each narrative reflects the transformative power of hope and faith that has accompanied them. We believe these stories will uplift and empower all women to pursue their dreams with unwavering determination and never give up on life and their aspirations.

eng