Rohingya Crisis Deepens: Over 200 Refugees Arrive In Indonesia Seeking Safety From Stateless Struggles

Over 200 Rohingya refugees reached Indonesia's Aceh, fleeing dire conditions. This marks a surge in Southeast Asia's refugee crisis, spotlighting ongoing struggles of the stateless Rohingya population seeking safety and dignity.

More than 200 Rohingya refugees landed in Indonesia‘s Aceh province over the weekend, in a continued wave of migration marking another chapter in the plight of the world’s largest stateless population. The head of Aceh‘s fishing community, Miftach Tjut Adek, confirmed their arrival in the West Peureulak region of East Aceh on Sumatra island on Sunday evening.

UNHCR Steps In

Faisal Rahman, the UNHCR officer, said the agency was in close contact with the local authorities. A UNHCR team was despatched to West Peureulak on Monday to assess the situation and provide necessary support.

Dangerous journeys in calm seas

The Rohingya, mainly Muslims who originally hail from Myanmar, typically escape dire circumstances in overcrowded camps on rickety boats and take shelter in Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Such dangerous travel season peaks between October and April when seas tend to be calmer.

Escalating Arrivals

Indonesia has seen a sharp increase in Rohingya arrivals. According to data from UNHCR, more than 2,000 refugees arrived on the land in 2023 alone, more than four times the total number of arrivals in the past four years. More than 500 refugees landed in the country between October and November last year.

Stateless and Persecuted

From where they have been stripped of citizenship and are regarded as foreigners in their homeland of Myanmar, the Rohingya are being systematically persecuted. Many of them have had to flee into Bangladesh, where nearly 1 million Rohingya currently reside in what the United Nations described as the world’s largest humanitarian refugee camp.