UN put Rohingya ‘at risk’ by sharing data without consent, says rights group

the Guardian
Kate Hodal
@katehodal
Tue 15 Jun 2021

Refugees tell Human Rights Watch they fear forced repatriation and persecution after personal details passed on to Myanmar

People wait to be registered in a UN centre in Kutupalong camp. Photograph: Andy Hall/The Observer

The UN may have put hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees at risk of persecution or involuntary repatriation back to Myanmar after improperly collecting and sharing refugees’ personal information with Bangladesh, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW), which is urging an investigation.

Over the past three years, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has registered more than 800,000 Rohingya refugees living in Bangladeshi camps in order to provide them with identity cards needed to access essential aid and services.