By YAYAN ZAMZAMI and EDNA TARIGAN (Associated Press)
In BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP), a wooden boat carrying many Rohingya Muslims overturned off the northernmost coast of Indonesia on Wednesday. Local fishermen who saved six people reported that more individuals were still on the boat.
There were no immediate reports of deaths.
The six survivors, consisting of four women and two men, were taken to a temporary shelter in the Samatiga sub-district. According to the fishermen who spoke to The Associated Press, the refugees’ boat capsized around 16 miles (25 Kilometers) from the coastline of Kuala Bubon Beach in Aceh province.
Amiruddin, a leader of the tribal fishing community in Aceh Barat district, mentioned that the rescued individuals disclosed that the boat was traveling east when it began leaking, and strong currents pushed it west of Aceh. The six survivors reported that others were still attempting to survive on the overturned vessel.
Around 740,000 Rohingya sought refuge in Bangladesh to escape the violent military campaign in their home country of Myanmar.
Numerous individuals have been attempting to escape overcrowded camps in Bangladesh to adjacent countries, leading to a surge in refugee numbers in Indonesia since November. This prompted Indonesia to seek assistance from the international community. Rohingya arriving in Aceh encounter some hostility from certain fellow Muslims.
Indonesia, along with Thailand and Malaysia, has not signed the United Nations’ 1951 Refugee Convention, which outlines the legal protections for refugees, and therefore is not obligated to receive them. Nonetheless, these countries have offered temporary shelter to distressed refugees.
The United Nations refugee agency reported that nearly 4,500 Rohingya, comprising primarily women and children, fled their home country of Myanmar and the refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh by boat last year. Of these individuals, 569 perished or went missing while crossing the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, marking the highest death toll since 2014.
It is nearly impossible for the Rohingya to safely return to Myanmar, as the military that persecuted them ousted Myanmar’s democratically elected government in 2021. Thus far, no country has provided substantial resettlement opportunities for them.
