Almost a million Rohingya people live in Cox’s Bazar – more than half of whom are children. Already one of the most densely populated countries in the world, it is unsurprising that the camp is severely overcrowded.
Tahira* is 9 months old. She lives in Cox’s Bazar with her aunt, Reshma*, who adopted her after her sister died during childbirth. Cradling Tahira on the mud floor of the family’s shelter, Reshma tells the heart-breaking story of how the family escaped Myanmar.
She explains how one day all the houses in her village were burned, and her own home destroyed.
Reshma and about 500 others from her community fled. They walked for twelve treacherous days to reach the camp, sharing the scarce food they had out among themselves until it ran out two days before they made it to safety.
Along the way, Reshma met her sister, who was heavily pregnant with Tahira. And although they survived the journey and reached the camp, Reshma’s sister tragically died shortly after giving birth to Tahira.