Kushida is a 59-year-old Rohingya woman. She works hard taking care of her small farm with happiness. Around her shelter, she grows many different vegetables and spinach. She grows the vegetables and spinach to feed her family. She also wants to keep using her farming skills. Everyday Kushida diligently takes care of the vegetables. She pulls out the weeds and protects the plants from bugs.
Her husband Ali Ahmad sells the vegetables and spinach at the marketplaces. Together, they grow the food and make money from selling it. This helps provide for their family's needs. Kushida has six family members who cannot fully depend on food aid. So she tries to support their basic needs with money from her small garden. Even with few resources, she plants vegetables, corn, and other crops. She rents land from a local landowner to have space to grow food for her family. Kushida knows if her garden does well, it helps her family. As the plants grow, they give Kushida hope despite the challenges of living in the camp.
‘If my garden succeeds, it helps support my family.’ Kushida.
The story of this dedicated Rohingya woman and her husband, Ali Ahmad, showcases their exemplary farming skills and their commitment to preserving farming culture. Their small farm becomes a symbol of hope, inspiring others to explore alternative ways of securing sustenance and fostering a sense of independence. This story reminds us of the strength found in experience and the potential for self-sufficiency, even in the most challenging circumstances.
About the photographer: Ro Arfat Khan, a 24-year-old photojournalist, visual storyteller, and social activist, was raised in northern Maungdaw in Arakan state, Myanmar. Arfat fled to Bangladesh with his family due to persecution, discrimination, and a violent crackdown by the Myanmar Military in August 2017. Currently, he lives in a refugee camp in Bangladesh.
‘Our journey was really hard with traumatic experiences. We walked for days through paddy fields and jungles to escape the military and crossed the Bay of Bengal.’ Arfat.
For decades, the Rohingya community has faced extreme violence, rape, persecution, and other atrocities in their native country. They have been targeted for ethnic cleansing, mass killings, and the burning down of their villages in Arakan State. Ultimately, more than one million Rohingya refugees, the majority of whom are children, women, and the elderly, have crossed the border into Bangladesh in 2017. Among them is Arfat Khan's family, who have witnessed these harrowing events. They have received emergency lifesaving assistance, including food, water, healthcare, and shelter after fled in Bangladesh but they have been denied access to higher education and other basic human rights.
Arfat worked as a volunteer in NGOs such as Médecins Sans Frontières from 2018 to 2020 and ActionAid Bangladesh as a team Leader from 2020 to 2021. He also worked at Translators Without Borders as an analytical Researcher in 2021, focusing on Rohingya social media usage. Additionally, he currently works at COAST Foundation as a Rohingya secondary school teacher as part of the UNICEF education programme in the refugee camps.
With a deep passion, he takes part in photography and storytelling through social media platforms, documenting the daily lives, creativity, and struggles of the Rohingya people.
‘In 2023, I joined the Rohingyatographer Collective, giving me a true source to tell stories and share the lives of Rohingya refugees. There are many stories from the Rohingya community that the world should notice. Through my lens, I have found a voice for social change and a means of raising awareness transcending language barriers and connecting with the world beyond the camps.’ Arfat.
This feature is part of The Rohingya Experience, an exhibition in St Helier, Island of Jersey during July 2024, developed by Rohingyatographer, a collective of Rohingya refugee photographers in partnership with Jersey Overseas Aid.