5 years on: Mohib Ullah lives among the Rohingya refugees
“We are not stateless; we are citizens of Myanmar” — that was the message Rohingya leader Mohib Ullah took to the international community as he campaigned for the rights of the Rohingyas and their right to return to their homeland.
He quickly emerged as a prominent voice for the persecuted Muslim ethnic minority who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh following the Myanmar military crackdown in 2017, which the United Nations and the United States have described as genocide.
Five years after he was killed by armed assailants at the Kutupalong camp in Ukhiya on September 29, 2021, the legacy of the 48-year-old continues to live among the Rohingya refugees in the sprawling camps of Cox’s Bazar.
Thousands of Rohingyas from different camps in Cox’s Bazar attended his funeral prayers the day after his death. He was later buried at Camp 1 in the Lambashia area of Ukhiya.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said it was “deeply saddened” by his killing.
Amnesty International called for a thorough investigation into Mohib Ullah’s death and urged the Bangladeshi authorities and the UN refugee agency to work together to protect people living in the camps. The rights group said the camps were facing an “increasing problem” of violence, often linked to control of the illicit drug trade.
In 2022, Bangladesh police charged at least 29 Rohingyas in connection with the murder, including members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA).
ARSA has denied any involvement in his killing.
Mohib Ullah’s name continues to be invoked in the Rohingya refugee camps in connection with rights, justice and repatriation. One of the central messages he left behind was that Rohingyas did not want to remain refugees indefinitely; they wanted to return to their homeland once their safety, dignity and rights were guaranteed.
Maulvi Rashid Ullah, a head majhi at Rohingya Camp 3 in Ukhiya, said Mohib Ullah was among the first to bring the Rohingyas’ demands for justice, peace and the right to return to their homeland to the attention of the international community.
“His killing was a great loss for the Rohingyas. Following the path he showed, Rohingyas continue to demand safe and dignified repatriation,” he said.
From a refugee to a global voice
Mohib Ullah fled to Bangladesh with his family following the Myanmar military’s operations in Rakhine State in 2017.
After taking refuge in Cox’s Bazar, he founded the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH) along with several Rohingya teachers, intellectuals and community leaders.
He soon became one of the community’s most recognisable voices, particularly among international media and rights organisations. He worked to document abuses against the Rohingya, demand justice and advocate for their safe and voluntary repatriation.
Members of his organisation went door to door in the refugee camps to collect accounts of abuses against Rohingyas.
They documented incidents including killings, torture, rape and the burning of homes and villages. Under Mohib Ullah’s leadership, the information was preserved for possible use in future efforts to seek justice.
In March 2019, he spoke on behalf of the Rohingyas at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, highlighting their statelessness, identity and desire to return to their homeland.
In his address to the UNHRC, he said: “Imagine you have no identity, no ethnicity, no country. Nobody wants you. How would you feel? This is how we feel today as Rohingya.”
“For decades we faced a systematic genocide in Myanmar. They took our citizenship. They took our land. They destroyed our mosques. No travel, no higher education, no healthcare, no jobs … We are not stateless. Stop calling us that. We have a state. It is Myanmar.”
In July that year, he met then-US President Donald Trump in Washington. During the meeting, he sought to learn about US plans regarding the repatriation of Rohingyas to Myanmar.
Mohib Ullah also played a prominent role in a major rally held at Kutupalong on August 25, 2019, to mark the Rohingyas’ “Genocide Day”. Various reports said around 200,000 Rohingyas took part in the gathering, further establishing his position as a leader among the refugees.
‘Irreparable loss’
Justice, peace and unity, along with the right to return to their homeland, remained central to Mohib Ullah’s work.
His objective was the safe, voluntary and dignified repatriation of Rohingya refugees.
Enayet Ullah, a head majhi at Rohingya Camp 8 in Ukhiya, said Mohib Ullah had been an important voice for Rohingya rights and repatriation.
“His death is an irreparable loss for us,” he said.
Given his advocacy, Mohib Ullah knew he could become the target of the hardliners who already threatened to kill him.
“If I die, I’m fine. I will give my life”, he told Reuters in 2019.