Why i wanted to publish my book?

 

Having grown up in a refugee camp in Bangladesh, a poor country that hosts one of the world’s largest refugee populations, I decided to write a book about my birth place in Myanmar, childhood experience as a refugee and later an activist fighting the genocide in Myanmar. Before ending up in the refugee camp, I was trafficked by a gang of human traffickers to Thailand, a country that rejects our plight and has never accepted us within its borders.

 

I am both a witness and a victim of many crimes: the genocide, human trafficking, persecution and the world’s continued indifference towards Rohingya suffering. It has always been important for me to remember as much as I can of life; fortunately, I kept some notes and pictures of my camp life all these years. Some earlier notes of my life with my mother in Bangladesh have remained with me despite my constant upheavals. With this book, I was using my story of survival to expose the Rohingya’s ongoing situation.

 

Already 29 years have passed since I was wrenched away from my homeland, Myanmar; for the past six years I have not seen my beloved mother. As I was thinking about all that time, many painful memories came so alive that I was prompted to write my experiences, which I presented in this book. 

 

This is a collection of stories kept secret, lessons learned, memories saved and experiences endured: all these have made me the person I am today. So, first and foremost, I must thank my mother and everyone who has provided support, help and inspiration, encouraging me to tell my story. 

 

It was my wish that this book will lead to a better understanding of refugee life in general, and specifically of what we Rohingya are going through as we flee from the genocide in Myanmar.