Challenges in Seeking Gender-Based and Reproductive Health Justice: A Case of Rohingya Women and Girls in Bangladesh

The Rohingya, one of the most persecuted ethnic communities, has been displaced from Myanmar due to state sanctioned atrocities prevailing in the country for the last several decades. With more than half of this population being composed of women and girls, innumerable instances of systematic sexual crime and violence against them perpetrated by Myanmar forces have been reported throughout the years. Simultaneously, deep-rooted gender inequalities, gender related violence and social discrimination among the Rohingya population continue to persist. Being impelled by moral and legal obligations, Bangladesh had to immediately address gender-based violence (GBV) and protect reproductive rights of these Rohingya women living in coastal areas when they sought refuge. However, most of the protections are life-saving and there is lack of full-fledged service to ensure their dignity and access to justice. Against this background, the paper addresses the evaluation of existing mechanisms in addressing sexual violence in Cox’s Bazar for the women, as well as the constraints in access to reproductive health justice. The article ends with a number of recommendations regarding the structural and fundamental development required in promoting gender-justice for Rohingya women in camp management. To achieve such objectives, the paper synthesized the available literature with interviews that were conducted with relevant stakeholders in the host communities.