“Art Against Genocide” First Publication On Rohingya Crisis

As much as the ongoing Rohingya crisis is being extensively covered by local and international media, the lack of a publication is the question persists among everyone.

- Wafiur Rahman

Similarly, protests against this humanitarian crisis through artwork had been missing all this time. But not anymore, as Cosmos Books has earned the distinction of bringing out the first publication of the Rohingya crisis, documenting the ordeal and also the artistic protests, in a book titled “Art Against Genocide”.

Published in association with Cosmos Foundation, 30 artworks are featured in the book, including those by painter Shahabuddin, who recently said in an interview with Dhaka Courier that although it is a humanitarian issue of gigantic proportions, the way the Bangladeshi government has handled their sheltering is truly commendable. “For the first time Europe is on our side, which has stirred my conscience. I have drawn several artworks on the Rohingyas, and will continue to do so, as I believe this will be a massive task.”

Artworks of other artists include Kalidas Karmakar, Maksuda Iqbal Nipa, Tanbir Sarwar Rana, Nabunda Shaha Nabo, Pradip Shaha and a host of others. They worked on various mediums such as oil on canvas, watercolour, acrylic on paper and more. The artworks were derived from Gallery Cosmos and Cox’s Bazar Art Club.

Risking death by sea or on foot, more than half a million have fled the destruction of their homes and persecution in the northern Rakhine province of Myanmar for neighbouring Bangladesh since August last year. The United Nations described the military offensive in Rakhine, which provoked the exodus, as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing”. Myanmar’s military says it is fighting Rohingya militants and denies targeting civilians.