Rohingya refugees escaped from Kutupalong, the world’s largest refugee camp in Bangladesh now adrift in the Andaman Sea
One of the refugees managed to contact the Rohingya Human Rights Initiative (RHRI) and give the coordinates which showed the ship drifting southeast of the Andaman Islands towards Aceh in Indonesia.
“Since the contact was made on Wednesday, we have no news of where they have drifted… We have appealed to all agencies working with such sea-borne refugees to try and help these people,” RHRI Director Sabber Kyaw Min told PTI over the phone.
However, RHRI’s statement could not be independently verified by either the Indian Coast Guard or Unified Andamans & Nicobar Command.
The Command’s spokesperson said through WhatsApp: “We have no information.” From the location given by RHRI, it appears that the Rohingya boat is outside Indian waters.
The refugees are mostly women and children, who number 120, and 40 adult men, said Min on Friday.
The Rohingya refugees have escaped from Kutupalong, the world’s largest refugee camp at Ukhiya in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazaar, and Balukali, another densely populated refugee camp nearby. “The refugees are in dire need of food, water and safety,” said Min.
Speaking to PTI over the phone, Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said, “There are some media reports but I am not aware of any such incident.” The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), in a statement made prophetically last week, warned of the dangers associated with such crossings.
The agency said it “warns that attempts at these journeys are exposing people to grave risks and fatal consequences.” Over 1,900 people, mostly Rohingyas, travelled by sea between January and November this year, compared to just 287 in 2021. The sea-borne refugees embarked from Myanmar and Bangladesh, according to UNHCR.
“Tragically, 119 people have been reported dead or missing on these journeys, this year alone,” the agency said. Most refugees headed for Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia.
Rohingya refugees who have managed to make their way to Indonesia are mostly being kept at Lhokseumawe in Indonesia’s Aceh province.
Need Of The Help For Them
In early March this year, the UN petitioned to raise the sum of 877 million dollars, essential to meet the needs of the 8,55,000 refugees from Myanmar residing in Kutupalong. Furthermore, they also help more than 4,44,000 Bangladeshis of different communities in vulnerable situations.
The refugee population’s basic needs in Kutupalong Refugee Camp include access to clean water and basic sanitation, food and shelter, education, health services, and also energy.
The Rohingya genocide is a series of ongoing persecutions by the Myanmar government of the Muslim Rohingya people forcing 1 million to flee to other countries, including India, where they entered in 2017.
However, now an affidavit, the Centre called Rohingyas “absolutely illegal migrants” who posed “serious threats to the national security” cannot assert the right to settle in India under the Constitution’s Article 21. The Centre has begun the process for deporting Rohingyas after receiving a confirmation from Myanmar regarding their nationality.
The military crackdown occurred from October 2016 to January 2017, and the second has been occurring since August 2017.
The crisis forced over a million Rohingya to flee to other countries. Most fled to Bangladesh, resulting in the creation of the world’s largest refugee camp, while others escaped to India, Thailand, Malaysia, and other parts of South and Southeast Asia.
