Indonesia rejects Rohingya refugees, sends boat to Malaysia
PC: Reuters via Al Jazeera
Dec 28, 2021: Authorities say dozens of Rohingya refugees detained after a boat capsized off the coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province were being sent into Malaysian waters according to a report by Al Jazeera.
At least 100 people, mostly women and children, aboard a wooden ship said to be taking in water were denied asylum in Indonesia and Instead, they were pushed into a neighboring Southeast Asian country.
Despite demands from NGOs and UN agencies to accept the refugees, Indonesian authorities provided the group with supplies, clothing and fuel, as well as a technician to repair their wrecked boat and sent them on their way.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Navy official Dian Suryansyah said the Rohingya were not Indonesian citizens and that the military could not “bring them in as refugees.” “It’s in line with government policy,” he added.
According to a local naval commander, the wooden boat was first spotted two days ago, stranded 130 km off the coast of Indonesia.
The Rohingya face widespread discrimination in Myanmar. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya were deported across the border into Bangladesh in 2017, where they are living in scattered refugee camps, in a military-backed campaign that the United Nations says amounts to genocide.
Indonesian authorities have not pushed back Rohingya refugees as strongly as they were in Malaysia or Thailand, but have been reluctant to accept them by sea.
The Indonesian government has been called upon by Amnesty International and the UNHCR to let the stranded group of Rohingya refugees land.
The UNHCR also demanded that Jakarta allow passengers to disembark, pointing out that the boat was unsuitable for sailing.
A local fisherman, Barduddin Younis told AFP that there were 120 people on board, including 51 children and 60 women. He said the engine had broken down and the migrants could not contact the local fishermen due to language barrier.
Last year, hundreds of Rohingya who fled persecution in Buddhist-majority Myanmar arrived in Indonesia. Since then, many people have fled to Malaysia, due to its over 100,000 Rohingya population.
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