LONDON – To mark the anniversary of the beginning of Rohingyas’ exodus from Myanmar to Bangladesh, BBC News Bangla will run five days of special output on the website bbc.com/bangla, its social-media platforms and radio output.
The special programming will start on Saturday 25 August with a radio phone-in programme. This will be followed by a Facebook Live with young Bangladeshis on how they think their country should handle the Rohingya issue.
On radio and online, BBC News Bangla’s Akbar Hossain will assess how Bangladesh has managed its diplomatic efforts to end the crisis and begin the repatriation of nearly a million refugees.
Shahnaz Parveen will meet residents of Cox’s Bazar to see how they have dealt with the crisis which has had a massive effect on the local environment, economy and social fabric. She will also explore the cases of child marriages in Rohingya families.
Video reporter, Shahnewaz Rocky, will explore how a year of living in camps has affected Rohingya women. A series of reports will highlight the lives of Rohingya children growing up in the camps and other aspects of refugee life.
BBC News Bangla Editor, Sabir Mustafa, said: “The flight of Rohingyas from the Rakhine state of Myanmar to Bangladesh has undoubtedly been one of the biggest stories of the past year. BBC journalists have brought the refugees’ personal stories – from tales of sexual violence to torture and killings – to the attention of a global audience. The one-year anniversary gives us an opportunity to take a fresh look at the plight of the refugees and explore the uncertain road ahead.”
The anniversary also will be marked by BBC News Burmese, with special reports – on radio, TV and online – focusing on the community relations between Rohingya and Rakhine one year after the start of the violence.
BBC News Bangla content reaches 15.4m people in Bangladesh every week and engages around 1.3m people around the world every week via its website bbc.com/bangla and on social media, including the BBC Bangla channel on YouTube. The BBC News Bangla Facebook page has over 12m followers (August 2018).
The TV programmes, BBC Probaho and Click, are broadcast by Channel i in Bangladesh and are available on bbc.com/bangla and the BBC Bangla YouTube channel. BBC News Bangla radio programmes, produced in London and Dhaka, air on the state FM network, Bangladesh Betar, as well as on shortwave and via bbc.com/bangla.
Burmese-speaking audiences can access the BBC via the website bbc.com/burmese, Facebook (over 14m followers), as well as Twitter and YouTube. The BBC News Burmese Monday to Friday TV news programme is broadcast by Myanmar’s digital channel, Mizzima TV, and is available via bbc.com/burmese and YouTube. The radio programmes are available online, on shortwave and via Myanmar’s FM network, Padamyar FM.
BBC News Bangla and BBC News Burmese are part of the BBC World Service.
