Rohingya woman in Bangladesh helps others flee Myanmar
KUTUPALONG, Bangladesh — Zahida Begum doesn’t remember her home village, a tiny speck amid the mountains and forests of Myanmar. She was only 18 months old when her mother smuggled her across the Naf River on a fishing boat, carrying her into Bangladesh, among hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya fleeing persecution in their home country.
Begum has been a refugee ever since. She grew up in Bangladesh’s Rohingya refugee camps, and now earns a living working for a string of international aid groups. On quiet days, she’s the kind of person who wanders around looking for someone to help.
So when frantic relatives called her in late September to tell her that Myanmar soldiers were burning Rohingya villages and tens of thousands of Rohingya were fleeing, the 28-year-old jumped into action.
She made calls to a half-dozen countries. She raised thousands of dollars. She called in favours and arranged for boats and smugglers.