Sahat Zia Hero
Founder
Sahat is a multifaceted talent—a photographer, writer, human rights activist, and the founder of Rohingyatographer Magazine. In 2023, he received two significant recognitions for his work on this project: the Prince Claus Seeds Award and the Nansen Refugee Regional Award.
Born in 1994 in Maungdaw, Arakan, Myanmar, Sahat was on a path to study Physics at Sittwe University before systematic discrimination against the Rohingya community curtailed his academic journey. Forced to flee Myanmar with his family in August 2017, he now lives in the refugee camps in Bangladesh. There, he initially served as a team leader for the Danish Refugee Council. In addition to his leadership of Rohingyatographer, he serves as a consultant for the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN), the Rohingya National Education Board (RNEB), the Rohingya Maìyafuìnor Collaborative Network, and Refugee Women for Peace and Justice (RWPJ). He balances freelance photography assignments for NGOs and media outlets with his work at the Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre.
He is a recurring contributor to the Rohingya Photo Competition and his work has been showcased in venues such as the Oxford Human Rights Festival, Liberation War Museum, Cox’s Bazar Cultural Centre, Head On Photo Festival in Sydney, and the Rohingya Centre of Canada.Tragically, he was among those who lost their homes in the catastrophic 2021 camp fires. He documented the ordeal using his phone, later publishing his first photobook, Rohingyatography, in 2021. That same year, he was nominated for the UNICEF Photographer of the Year Award.
Beyond photography, Sahat writes in English, Burmese, and Rohingya. His poetry appeared in the 2020 anthology Rohingya Dreams, and he has co-authored various academic articles. In 2025, he represented the Rohingya community as a speaker at the Stakeholders’ Dialogue Conference in Cox’s Bazar, presented his work at the London College of Communication’s Lines of Engagement Conference, worked as a cameraman with the Bangladesh production team on Hará Watan (The Lost Land), and served as a research assistant with the Refugee Migration Lab. He also produced a video for the UNGA80 event on the Rohingya crisis at the UN Headquarters in New York, organised by the Women's Peace Network. He is a 2025 recipient of the Prince Claus Emergency Fund.
Below is a list of his published works, both photographic and written, as well as events where he was invited to speak.
2026
Lukas Vainavičius. The World Largest Refugee Camp
DW Akademie. Beyond Borders Asia 2.0: Beyond Borders Asia 2.0: Journalism for and with refugees, migrants and host communities
TRT World Newsfeed. From Tehran to Greenland, President Trump fans political flames
2025
TRT World. The Rohingya crisis, now eight years on.
MSF. Moments of hope in a year of turmoil
MSF. Life in the Rohingya camps
MSF. Adapting to Life in Kutapalong: A Rohingya Photo Story
South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance. Situation in Rakhine and Implications for Bangladesh
Asia-Pacific Refugee Rights Network, Bangkok, Thailand. A Light of Hope for Refugees in Waiting
Talk to Al Jazeera. Rohingya refugee artists fighting to keep their story alive
What is Peace Photography? Online panel discussion, Kings College London
The Observers. As US withdraws aid from Bangladesh, humanitarian crisis worsens
The Guardian. What Trump’s assault on USAid means for the world – podcast
Observer Diplomat. Food as Resistance: The Rohingya Struggle for Cultural Survival
Norwegian Refugee Council. Sahat Zia Hero
Frankfurter Rundschau. The burden of the Rohingya
2024
Routed. The spectres of coloniality that haunt the Rohingya struggle for belonging
Al Jazeera. Photos: The world’s displaced population equivalent to 12th largest country
NPR. Whatever happened to ... the Rohingya refugee who won a U.N. award for his photos?
Al Jazeera English Live. More than 200 Muslims-minority Rohingya have been killed in fighting in Myanmar this past week
2023
NPR. Photos: This is life in the world's largest refugee camp, as seen by their own
F-Stop Magazine. Interview with Sahat Zia Hero – Rohingyatographer Magazine
Reasons to be Cheerful. Rohingya Refugees Capture the Reality of Their Lives One Photo at a Time
Al Jazeera. What is life like inside the world’s biggest refugee camp?
SBS News. They are called the forgotten people. This photographer tells their stories
Himal SouthAsian. A Rohingya photographer’s dispatch on food-aid cuts in the refugee camps
Centre for Migration Studies, Sage Journals. Five Years Lost: Youth Inclusion in the Rohingya Response
Norwegian Refugee Council. Today’s fire in Cox’s Bazar must lead to better living conditions in makeshift camps
Kontinente Magazine. Refugees take pictures of their everyday life in the camp
The Observers. Refugee photographers fight to raise awareness about plight of Rohingya in Bangladesh
Anadolu Agency. ‘Love Gifts’: Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh donate 700 blankets, 200 jackets to Türkiye
2022
Al Jazeera. ‘Through our own eyes’: Rohingya refugees stage photography show
The Guardian. ‘This is our documentary of the crisis we face’: the Rohingya smartphone photographers.'
NBC News. Young Rohingya photographers capture life in world’s largest refugee camp.
Visual Rebellion. Snaps of life in the world’s biggest refugee camp
Lacuna Magazine. Rohingya refugees are using photography to tell their own stories
Forced Migration Review. Voice and power at the intersection of art, technology and advocacy
Migrant Voice. The photography magazine from the world’s largest refugee camp
UNHCR. Rohingya boy learns language of photography
Norwegian Refugee Council. Eid Mubarak: Eid celebrations in the world's largest refugee camp
Amnesty International. Rohingya Voices Matter – Activist Toolkit
2021
International Rescue Committee. Strengthening Connections: Why Social Cohesion Matters for the Rohingya and Host Bangladeshi Communities
Sahat lends his photographic talents to UNHCR, where his images are not only showcased in social media campaigns but also included in global fundraising initiatives. These visuals play a crucial role in highlighting the pressing challenges confronting the Rohingya community. For additional details, please refer to the following links:
Media
ISCG. Humanitarian Response to the Fire in Rohingya Refugee Camp
Fundraisers
UNHCR. Rohingya refugees need urgent support
UNHCR Germany. Bangladesh: Fire in Kutupalong refugee camp
UNHCR Japan. Rohingya emergency
UNHCR Malaysia. Help Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh
UNHCR Canada. Your help is urgently needed for Rohingya refugees
Social Media
UNHCR Bangladesh (FB)
UNHCR Bangladesh (IG)
