The Assimilation of Stateless Rohingyas in Bangladesh

Abstract

Since 1972, waves of Rohingya refugees have entered Bangladesh fleeing the military-backed human rights violations in their native Myanmar. Despite attempts of repatriation and the government’s consistent refusal to integrate the Rohingyas, an indefinite number has assimilated in mainland Bangladesh. Considering the daunting challenges to quantify the size and nature of this population, we use a small sample of 167 participants to identify how these refugees have assimilated in local communities. Most of them, who arrived approximately 16 years earlier as children or adolescents, have now been absorbed into the informal labour market earning an average monthly household income of BDT 10,270 (roughly USD 120). Unsurprisingly, participants have also adapted to the language and earned some level of education. As the Rohingya crisis remains protracted with themass influx of 2017, this chapter aims to inform the primary features of past unassisted assimilation, in order to pave the way for further research and for long-run policy formulation.