More than 150 Rohingya refugees, including women and children, were rescued off the coast of Indonesia after their boat had been sat at sea for days, according to the UN refugee agency ( UNHCR ) on Friday ( October 25 ).
The predominantly Muslim cultural Rohingya are subject to severe persecution in Myanmar, and thousands of people risk their lives each year on dangerous ocean voyages to Malaysia or Indonesia.
The ship carrying 152 people remained tethered 1.5 kilometers off the South Aceh district’s coast for times while authorities considered whether to let them land, but they were suddenly brought ashore on Thursday evening.
For the philanthropic spirit, life-saving work, as well as the landing grants that were given to 152 immigrants, UNHCR’s Faisal Rahman told AFP on Friday.
” Many of those on the ship were defenseless women and children, victims of mortal trafficking”, he said, adding that UNHCR and other charitable organizations were now assisting the migrants.
Rohingya arrivals in Indonesia typically occur in a cyclical pattern, slowing down during the rainy months and returning when water conditions are quiet, as they have in subsequent weeks.
Another group of more than 140 Rohingya migrants landed in Indonesia’s North Sumatra state on Thursday.