In the Rohingya refugee camps, we really want you to keep the gas running | Ajas Khan

Aid cuts mean the ethnically-cleansed refugees from Myanmar face a return to cooking over toxic flames, or keeping children out of school to spend all day scouring for firewood

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our years ago the US recognised the genocide of my people, and nations around the world came to our aid. Today, we ask the world to reaffirm that commitment. What do we ask for that will save lives, the local habitat and even dollars for Rohingya refugees?

Cooking gas.

I am Ajas Khan, from Rakhine state, Myanmar. As a child, my friends and I played football, laughed together and dreamed of our lives to come. But when I was 13 and in the village school, the Rohingya faced unspeakable horrors at the hands of Myanmar’s military. Junta terrorists burned our villages, killed families and attempted to erase generations of my people. My family, along with more than 750,000 other Rohingya, fled to Bangladesh on foot, carrying only pain and loss. Contacting those friends with whom I once lived and dreamed is now impossible.