In Pics: Priyanka Visits Rohingya Refugee Camps, Urges Fans to Support Kids Whose Future is Bleak

Editor

posted on 6 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

27
views

The 35-year-old Bollywood star said the world needs to come together to give Rohingya refugee kids a secure future as "no child deserves a life without hope for the future."

Actor Priyanka Chopra, who is the global Goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, is currently in Bangladesh as part of an organisation’s initiative to educate them. She is currently spending her time at a refugee camp in Cox's Bazar with Rohingya children and a couple of volunteers who have taken the initiative to teach the kids.

The 35-year-old Bollywood star said the world needs to come together to give Rohingya refugee kids a secure future as "no child deserves a life without hope for the future." Taking to Instagram, PeeCee shared a series of photographs of her experience with these children.

"...Since the #Rohingya children have arrived in Cox’s Bazar, they have been living in overcrowded camps with no real place that to call their own. Imagine a space that lets you forget your troubles and be a child again... even if it's only for just a few hours a day," Priyanka wrote.

In another post, Priyanka shared, "With your help, maybe these children can have a chance at a future...because right now, their future is bleak. The world needs to care. We need to care."

When Mansur Ali, 12 yrs old, first came to the Child Friendly Space (CFS) at the Balukhali camp, he was only drawing scenes of bloodshed and violence. Helicopters shooting at him and his friends playing soccer... or his village and home being on fire with burning bodies all around him.. Today, his drawings reflect a more hopeful story, one we would like all these children to have. Since the #Rohingya children have arrived in Cox’s Bazar, they have been living in overcrowded camps with no real place that to call their own. Imagine a space that lets you forget your troubles and be a child again... even if its only for just a few hours a day. For the Rohingya children, over 300,000, in the camps in Bangladesh this is the only space that allows them to be kids. These Child Friendly Spaces created by @unicef give kids access to art, music, dance, sport, and counselling etc. The space has often proved to be very therapeutic, helping these kids deal with the horrific situations they faced.. the @unicef aid workers work tirelessly to make sure these children find their spirit again. It doesn’t matter where a child is from or what his or her circumstances are... NO child deserves a life without hope for the future. The world needs to care. We need to care. Please lend your support at www.supportunicef.org #childrenuprooted @unicef @unicefbangladesh
A post shared by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on May 22, 2018 at 6:54am PDT

Across the river is Myanmar(Burma.) It’s empty now, but a few months ago this area, known as “Sabrang,” was filled with hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees fleeing Myanmar. Their trip here was filled with many hardships and tremendous danger. Many of them made their journey on foot, walking for days through the hills, then floating across the Naf River or the Bay of Bengal on make shift boats...many of them injured, pregnant, elderly, etc. Their ordeal didn’t end here...after entering Bangladesh, they would often have to wait for days, sleeping in the open fields with no food or water, for aid workers to reach them. For a lot of the Rohingya children, this ordeal will leave them scarred, physically and emotionally, for the rest of their lives. With your help, maybe these children can have a chance at a future...because right now, their future is bleak. The world needs to care. We need to care. Please lend your support at www.supportunicef.org #ChildrenUprooted @unicef @unicefbangladesh
A post shared by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on May 22, 2018 at 3:30am PDT

I’m in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh today for a field visit with UNICEF, to one of the largest refugee camps in the world. In the second half of 2017, the world saw horrific images of ethnic cleansing from the Rakhine State of Myanmar(Burma). This violence drove nearly 700,000 Rohingya across the border into Bangladesh - 60% are children! Many months later they are still highly vulnerable, living in overcrowded camps with no idea when or where they will ever belong...even worse, when they will get their next meal. AND...as they finally start to settle and feel a sense of safety, monsoon season looms...threatening to destroy all that they’ve built so far. This is an entire generation of children that have no future in sight. Through their smiles I could see the vacancy in their eyes. These children are at the forefront of this humanitarian crisis, and they desperately need our help. The world needs to care. We need to care. These kids are our future. Pls Lend your support at www.supportunicef.org #ChildrenUprooted @unicef @unicefbangladesh Credit: @briansokol @hhhtravels
A post shared by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on May 21, 2018 at 6:27am PDT

Last year, Priyanka had visited a Syrian refugee camp in the Jordanian capital of Amman, where she had also met the queen of Jordan, Rania Al Abdullah.