On World Refugee Day, the virtual exhibition Añrá Rohingya (We Are Rohingya) was launched by Rohingyatographer Magazine. The exhibition showcases unique photographic work by a collective of Rohingya photographers based in the world’s largest refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
The exhibition deals with the subject of identity through intimate recordings of the daily lives of a displaced community. Having fled violence and persecution in Myanmar in August 2017, this collective portrait explores themes of memory, loss, and love and hope among the Rohingya refugee community, honouring their strength, endurance and resilience.
“With this exhibition, we want the world to see the Rohingya refugee community through our own eyes. We want people to see us as human beings, just like everyone else and to share our hopes and dreams, our sadness and our grief with others, to make connections.” – Sahat Zia Hero, founder of Rohingyatographer Magazine
The photography exhibition offers a vital platform for Rohingya youth to express themselves. As the international media has turned its attention elsewhere, Rohingya refugees find themselves largely cut-off from the outside world. Unable to return home, but unable to move forward, this photography collective explore what it means to be Rohingya, displaced from their homeland, living in harsh conditions in the refugee camps while striving for a better life in the future. This self-publishing platform provides young people with an important outlet to share their voices and experiences with the world.
The exhibition has been curated collaboratively by David Palazón, former curator of the Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre and Sahat Zia Hero, Rohingya photographer and founder of Rohingyatographer Magazine, with photographs by Rohingya photographers: Ro Yassin Abdumonaf, Shahida Win, Azimul Hasson, Abdullah Khin Maung Thein, Hujjat Ullah, Sahat Zia Hero, Md Jamal, Enayat Khan, Md Iddris and Omal Kahir.
The exhibition has been made possible with the generous support of the Spanish Embassy in Dhaka, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and Casa Asia in Barcelona.
To access the virtual exhibition, magazine and for more information about this unique project, please visit: www.rohingyatographer.org
