A hunger strike over indefinite detention is started by Assamese Rohingya and Chin refugees

Rohingya and Chin refugees from Myanmar, lodged in a transit camp in Goalpara of Assam, have gone on hunger strike to protest what they termed indefinite detention, a senior official said on Tuesday. “After that, the home secretary and the inspector general of prisons were sent to the camp to speak with the refugees,” Additional Chief Secretary Ajay Tewary stated. And officials are optimistic that a quick resolution to the problem will be achieved.” The hunger strike began on Monday night, and Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister, has been made aware of the circumstances.

A total of 103 refugees from Myanmar are reportedly being held at the camp, including women and children who are illegal immigrants from the Rohingya and Chin ethnic groups into India. The authorities persisted in demanding that all prisoners receive proper meals, all other amenities that they could need, and compliance with the rules outlined in the prison handbook. They want to be turned over to the UNHCR in New Delhi so they can go to one of the capital’s detention centers and subsequently be resettled in a third nation.

According to a human rights activist from the Rohingya community, 40 of the prisoners are still being held despite having UNHCR-issued refugee IDs. The Rohingya Human Rights Initiative’s director, Sabber Kyaw Min, went on to say that they had left their homes and nation to seek safety in India. He urged everyone to get involved and speak up in order to allow them to live with dignity. Thirty-five Myanmar refugees who were being held at the Goalpara detention camp wrote the district government in July expressing their desire to be released from the camp. The state home department received the letter.