In grim camps, Rohingya hope U.N. genocide hearing can bring justice

Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh –

Hope is a fragile but persistent force in Bangladesh’s sprawling Rohingya camps of Cox’s Bazar, where more than a million refugees forced to flee Myanmar live in squalid conditions.

In rows of bamboo shelters and muddy lanes, refugees who escaped Myanmar nearly a decade ago await developments more than 8,000 kilometers away at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, where a genocide case against Myanmar opens on Monday.

“We want justice and peace,” said Janifa Begum, 37, a mother of two. “Our women lost their dignity when the military junta launched the eviction. They burned villages, killed men, and women became victims of widespread violence.”