BOAT WITH NEARLY 200 ROHINGYA REFUGEES LANDS IN INDONESIA AFTER A MONTH AT SEA

Sun 08 January 2023:

Approximately 200 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, arrived on Indonesia’s western coast on a wooden boat on Sunday, according to authorities.

This is the fifth boat transporting Rohingya migrants to arrive in Indonesia since November, according to the authorities.

Each year, thousands of the severely persecuted Rohingya, who are primarily Muslims, risk their lives on dangerous journeys, frequently in pretty poor boats, in an effort to reach Malaysia or Indonesia.

The wooden vessel — which carried 69 men, 75 women and 40 children — arrived at around 02:30pm local time (0730am GMT) on a beach in Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh, local police chief Irwan Fahmi Ramli said.

“They are generally healthy, but there is one pregnant woman among them, and four people are sick,” Ramli said.

Nearly 200 Rohingya refugees land in Indonesia in latest boat arrival.#Rohingya pic.twitter.com/ClDJpp9J0y

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) January 8, 2023

According to one of the passengers, the boat departed Bangladesh on December 10.

“We feel very happy because we arrived here. Already, our engine is damaged and also we don’t have food in the boat,” 26-year-old Fairus told reporters.

Around a million Rohingya were estimated to be living in refugee camps in Bangladesh after they fled persecution in neighbouring Myanmar in 2017.

Four vessels carrying Rohingya refugees have already landed in Indonesia in November and December last year, carrying a total of more than 400 passengers.

More than 2,000 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the risky journey in 2022, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR — at levels similar to 2020.

According to the UNHCR, approximately 200 Rohingya who attempted hazardous sea crossings last year are believed to have died or are still missing.

However, the number may increase as a result of the presumed deaths of relatives of 180 Rohingya migrants who were on another ship drifting at sea for weeks.

Their deaths could not be verified by the UNHCR.

However, according to spokesman Babar Baloch, if accurate, 2022 would surpass 2013 and 2014, when more than 900 and 700 respectively were reported dead or missing, as the deadliest year for Rohingya crossings.

The refugees often travel to Malaysia, which is comparatively affluent, but many first settle in Indonesia, which is perceived as being more welcoming.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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