Rohingya rights group seeks release of refugees on hunger strike in India's detention camp

A Rohingya rights organization on Wednesday asked the Indian government to release refugees who have been on hunger strike since Monday in a detention camp in the northeastern state of Assam, some of whom have UN refugee cards.

"They came to save their lives, and they are innocent. The Matia Detention Centre alone holds over 100 people, 40 of whom have refugee cards issued by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees... we request that the government release them," India-based Rohingya Human Rights Initiative Director Sabbre Kyaw Min told Anadolu over the phone.

He said nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have been separated from their families and are being held in detention across the South Asian nation.

“We urgently appeal to the government of India, the judiciary, and the international community to act now,” he said. “The release of these refugees is not only a matter of legal obligation—it is a matter of humanity.”

Dozens of Rohingya refugees and members of the Chin ethnic group from Myanmar began a hunger strike on Monday at India's biggest transit camp for illegal migrants in Matia, Goalpara district.

Late Tuesday night, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Ajay Tewary said they are “hopeful that the matter will be sorted out soon.”

About 1.2 million Rohingya have been living in Bangladesh since August 2017, fleeing a severe military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state, while there are an estimated 40,000 Rohingya in India, dispersed across the country.