AhlulBayt News Agency: As Nikash Tara prepared for Eid Al-Adha celebrations on Saturday, she struggled to recall the last time she served a proper meal for her family.
In the overcrowded camps of Cox’s Bazar, a nutritious meal is a rare luxury, available only during special occasions and dependent on charitable donations.
Most days, Rohingya refugee mothers like Tara rely on food rations, which have been drastically reduced in recent years due to funding shortages.
“It was probably during Eid Al-Fitr when we last had a truly nutritious meal… We survive on food rations, which are not enough now. Sometimes, I skip meals so my children can eat,” Tara told Arab News.
“We get rice, lentils, and oil, but no vegetables, no milk. It’s hard to call it a ‘meal,’ let alone nutritious.”
Eid Al-Adha, known as the “Feast of Sacrifice”, is the first time this year Tara can serve meat to her family.
The holiday commemorates Prophet Ibrahim’s test of faith, when he was commanded by God to sacrifice his son. To honor this event, Muslims slaughter an animal and distribute the meat among relatives and the poor.
“On Eid, we received a small portion of meat… I prepared a curry with potatoes and the meat I received. Although it wasn’t much, it made the children happy, as it was their first meal with beef this year,” Tara said.
“It hurts me as a mother. My heart breaks when my children get excited over a single good meal. It reminds me how little they get on normal days. Eid should be joyful, but I cry inside, knowing my children are deprived every other day of the year. I feel helpless.”
Mizanur Rahman, refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox’s Bazar, said the camps received 1,800 cattle and 350 goats for Eid sacrifice, donated by various Muslim and local NGOs.
“In addition, different organizations and philanthropists pledged to deliver 50,000 kg of fresh meat to be distributed on Eid Al-Adha,” Rahman told Arab News.
The donations will help Bangladeshi authorities reach many Rohingya families, offering them a rare feast on Eid.
Bangladesh hosts about 1.3 million Rohingya Muslims, who have fled Myanmar for decades to escape persecution, especially during the 2017 military crackdown, which the UN has described as a ‘textbook case’ of ethnic cleansing.
Most Rohingya refugees now live in Cox’s Bazar, the world’s largest refugee settlement, where humanitarian conditions have deteriorated due to declining aid since the COVID-19 pandemic.
With no job opportunities, Mariam Khatun’s family is entirely dependent on food aid.
“With little food aid and no way to earn a living, a decent meal is unimaginable for my children,” Khatun told Arab News.
Though Eid is a joyful occasion, she said it is painful that joy comes only once or twice a year.
“It breaks my heart when my children look at the meat and ask: ‘Will we eat this again tomorrow?’ I have no answer.”
Before fleeing her village in Myanmar, the 29-year-old mother of two used to prepare spicy beef curry, her children’s favorite dish.
“But here, I barely have meat. We rely entirely on food rations, but the amount has been cut so much. It’s not enough for a full month,” she said.
“Maybe only on this Eid, we got a little meat. That’s the only time this year my children had something nutritious. We’re not living; we’re just trying not to starve.”
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