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TIME TO FIGHT – COVID-19 | POEM FROM EXTRAORDINARY TEENAGE ROHINGYA REFUGEE POET

 18/04/2020

By Nur Sadek, The Rohingya Post

As we face one of the best threats to humanity, our hope and resilience come in play to fight against the threat.

Covid-19, the global pandemic, is threatening every fabric of the world.

As for over a million Rohingya refugees in various refugee camps in Bangladesh, it becomes another fight to fight after the genocide we have faced in our native country Myanmar.

I was born in Ngan Chaung Village, Northern Maungdaw, the Rakhine State of Myanmar in late 2017. My family of six had to flee into neighbouring Bangladesh to fight the fear and terror.

Now I am 18 and living in Musani Nayara Refugee Camp, Cox’s Bazar. I am stronger ever having faced and fight the man-made genocide in Myanmar.

Yet again, we fight an invisible enemy which doesn’t discriminate race, colour or faith.

Like fight the genocide, we can fight the Covid-19 together.

Here is a poem that I have written underneath one of the thousands of refugee shelters where Rohingya are in extreme fear, and yet resilient.

We can fight it together with common principles, values, strengths and hope.

 

TIME TO FIGHT

Dear world and people it’s time to fight by staying inside and Covid-19 will definitely hide.

Let’s pray alone by waking at midnight.

We all are here to bright as like as sunlight.

Requesting you not to come outside.

Stay at home and save lives.

Our time will resume and strive.

There is nothing to worrisome because God is always with us.

Covid-19 is committing a big crime and Doctors are working hard to be on time.

Wash your hands with soap.

We will defend with trap.

But remember to fight with Covid 19 weapons should be soap, tissue, Mask and other hygiene things.

Kindly abide law of own government.

We can fight by staying at home.

Covid-19 will be powerless if we can stay inside home.

Save your life.

Save your family.

Save your community.

Save your country.

I request you to Save the world.

Thank you so much.

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Part 4: Anthology of a Refugee that finds freedom through poetry

By Tasmi Quazi and Nur Sadek

I wrote about my history as a Globe Trotter, which became my nickname throughout my Schooling career. I was born in Iran but nationally; I am from Bangladesh which is my Motherland, but it is the country I spent the least number of years. Thereafter, we went to Zimbabwe and finally to be settled in South Africa.

It provided a perfect interlude to get to know Nur and his history! I posed two specific questions, to which his responses again amazed me; how an eighteen year old can posses such depth of emotion!

When and where were you born in Myanmar; and what do you miss most about the place, that you likened to paradise?

I, Nur Sadek was born in 5 Jun, 2002 with a miracle cry, number 3 of 6 brothers that we are. My mummy gave birth to me in a place where the peace is hidden by the government. The country where I was born is called Myanmar and the State where I grew up is Rakhine State. My home town is Maung daw, and the village which is Ngan chaung is in the Northern part of Maung daw. Now I'm not where I was born to be. I'm forcibly here where I never wanted to be.

The place which I mostly miss is my home in Myanmar. Where I used to make plans for the future and I enjoyed them with my family. The home which I miss is like a building of paradise and surrounded by angels. The things which I lost may mean nothing for others but for me, it was a part of my life's happiness. I not only miss home but also everything about my country.

I had a house, car, land, money and different kinds of property. I was in a good spirits unlike now because I am akin to a caged animal in an open-air prison! I was one who belonged to a rich family but now we are all in despair. To me all this turmoil is small, if it leads us to peace on this planet.

Please give us a detailed narrative account leading up to you seeking refuge in Bangladesh 3 years ago, please share the emotions you experienced along the way?

Three years before Bangladesh we were with the Myanmar government until they started discriminating and waging genocide on the Rohingya. This is because Rohingya are from the religion of Islam. For that, most of us became homeless.

Yes they discriminated us, we were treated as unequals which I could not tolerate because I'm a human like others. I was discriminated and tortured in Myanmar. However, I planned to flee to a country where I thought would be full of humanity. We finally fled to a place called Bangladesh. While I was crossing the border, I saw Bengali people as angels receiving us. However subsequently, they are behaving like animals of a jungle.

I became familiar with fakeness in humanity! I saw the smiles on the helpers' faces but when I got to know them, I discovered how filled with discrimination they are, of us.

It's been three years since I've been at a refugee camp in Bangladesh which hasn't erased my hope. My hope is to be free from this open-air prison. Now I stay as a caged animal beside a hill, without safety. The dream which I have it's unreachable now! The life which I have is without safety and I'm still alive without energy.

While I was in Myanmar I was discriminated by the Buddhist government. Sadly, now I'm facing discrimination by humans like me who are Muslim. What I want to say is, the Rohingya are humans and need not deserve to be sold. Rohingya are not in Bangladesh to eat but to survive. Rohingya were stars of darkness and will be stars again very soon.

Yet, I am at the camp at this moment, we have to care for each other! We are born for each other.

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Part 2: Anthology of a Refugee that finds freedom through poetry

Discrimination, ominously hangs over each refugees heads, worldwide! What is the formal definition? The unjust, prejudicial treatment of difference in categories of people such as culture, religion, race, age, or sex.

I asked both Nur and his best friend, Shukkur, how this noose hangs around their necks. I relayed how I experienced it and got them to share their gross realities which unfortunately they couldn't be direct about. It would make them even more vulnerable than they are. I realise that in my own case I would have to pinpoint specific people and I wouldn't want to blemish their characters like that forever. So here's praying fervently, the discriminators ammend their ways, with time that reforms.

Tasmi : How I have experienced discrimination is through my gender in Bangladesh. Males are treated with superiority than females was my experience, growing up. It sadly includes ones complexion, the fairer you are, the more beautiful. So I won a lot of admiration and envy coming back from Iran where it snowed where we were, hence affecting one's Melanin levels. To Zimbabwe, in which the hot African sun roasted me on my walks back from Primary School. Then in South Africa, post democratic transition, I innocently jumped into a pool with my Romanian friends, only to have another white older female disgustedly walk off because she couldn't imagine swimming together with a 'brown' girl. I also recall again in Primary School, my Christian friend, commenting that it's such a shame I am not Christian because I won't join the others in heaven. Luckily, my experiences were few and far between.

Nur: I feel like laughing it off in front of the world but inside, my heart burns like ember. I feel like I'm a tortoise swimming in fire. Yes, I am a Rohingyan without firm ground under my legs. To me discrimination is unacceptable not because I'm a Poet, but because I'm a refugee. I am made to feel bad and consume my anger. I realise something in my past experience of discrimination, I was made to feel ashamed but we humans are born for each other! I question myself, why don't people understand? According to me, discriminating others is like slaughtering a living being with a blunt knife. While I have been victim to discrimination, I have asked Allah, 'Why did you create me from the Rohingyan nation?'. I hate the word called discrimination and more so, I don't discriminate! Let's erase this action from this world!

Shukkur: When someone discriminates me, I don't show my anger to them. I speak to myself to reassure myself that the world is changing day-by-day. However, they are not changing yet, maybe be after some number of days they will understand. Until then, I plant a fake smile on my face but inside my heart, it is burning and my eyes become totally red. I control myself!

I think to myself, when I was born as a Rohingyan, I am the unfortunate one! I was born only to be discriminated and to be treated as an animal. In fact, when I face discrimination, I crave a touch of humanity, if I'm not treated as a human, what's the use of living in this world?

The one who discriminates me, I try to change his discrimination, by love onto love. Love has the power to change everything from bad to good. When I am discriminated, I show my love more to their discrimination. I myself promise not to discriminate anyone in my whole life! I don't hate my discriminators because I know darkness can't be conquered by darkness. When I am bad and angry, then it will be like darkness above darkness but I have a greater knowledge to understand them, what type of people they are. I just have one option, to pray for them to be the change.

That ended our powerful reflection on discrimination as a trio. We hope it makes you as passionate as us to never discriminate!

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This is Who I am.

By Nur Sadek.

I fight depression with smiles.

I have learnt love by loving others.

I treat my loved ones as my brothers and sisters.

People find me in their difficult situation.

Always there for a human with an unlocked heart.

I'm in front of the world with a word called kindness.

Sometimes feels like I'm the only one who cares about the poor.

I was born with a rose and the rose I have kept for someone.

The future I have, none can guess except our Creator because I'm a servant of Allah.