KALADAN NEWS

Dated: June 15, 2005

A Teenage Refugee Girl Tortured by Her Employer

Teknaf, June 15: A teenage refugee girl was severely tortured by her employer in Teknaf upazila of Cox’s Bazaar District, said Shifi Ullah from Dhumdumia makeshift camp.

The victim is identified as Khalada Begum, 15, daughter of Noor Mohammad of Dumdumia makeshift camp of Teknaf police station under Cox’s Bazaar District.

On May 25, 2005, Khalada Begum has been employed as a servant of Abdul Gaffar, a shopkeeper of Teknaf upazila (sub-district) as her father was facing acute poverty.

After three days later, on May 28, at about 11:00 pm, Noor Mohamed, the employer entered secretly Khaleda’s bed room and attempted to rape while she was sleeping like a dog. But, he failed to rape her. And she was crying for help, the wife of the culprit run to Khaleda’s bed room and he was caught with red-handed, according to the victim’s mother.

After the incident, there was some altercation between wife and husband. But, doing nothing to her husband, she reduced her anger by beating severely to the victim while she got many injuries, said the victim Khaleda.

However, the next morning, on May 29, 2005, the victim was sent to her parents by the wife of the culprit.

Being not satisfied, the culprit went to the makeshift camp of the victim in the evening of the day. After arrival, he beat up the victim again in front of her parents, accusing her of watch stolen from the culprit’s. Seeing the incident, nearby refugees rushed to the spot and rescue the victim, said the father of the victim.

The matter was reported to the concerned authorities but no action is taken against the culprit till writing of the report because of he is an influential person in this area.

“This kind of torture on a girl in refugee camp is unthinkable in civilized country” said a local people who declined to mention his name.

Noor Mohamed and his family fled to Bangladesh after the relocation of their village for military establishment in 1990. But his family has been staying out of the refugee camp after crossing Burma-Bangladesh border. He maintains his family doing various works such as--- selling vegetables, pulling rickshaw and day laborer--- in Teknaf area.

In 2003, the operation clean hearth” of Bangladesh picked up some Rohingya families including Noor Mohamed from Teknaf area and put them in one place near Teknaf upazila. However, they were shifted to Dumdumia makeshift camp from Teknaf in October 17, 2004 and still living at Dumdumia camp as undocumented refugees. ##

For more information please contact at:

Mobile: +880 11 227 138

Email: [email protected]hoo.com

Website: www.kaladanpress.org