Another Rohingya refugee boat lands in Indonesia

Indonesia. A boat carrying more than 100 Rohingya refugees landed in Indonesia’s westernmost province on Thursday, United Nations officials said. This is the largest number of arrivals in Indonesia since 2015.
The mostly Muslim Rohingya face great persecution in Myanmar, and each year thousands make the long and expensive sea journey, often risking their lives on flimsy boats, in an attempt to reach Malaysia or Indonesia.
Faisal Rahman, a security assistant at the UN refugee agency, confirmed that the boat landed on the shores of the village of Kuala Parek in East Aceh on Thursday morning. He said that the exact number of refugees is “yet to be confirmed” but local authorities estimate that 137 refugees have arrived.
According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, from mid-November to the end of January, 1,752 refugees, including mostly women and children, have reached the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra in Indonesia.
Some of the boats have been sent back to sea due to changes in sentiment towards minority groups in ultra-conservative Indonesian regions. Many Acehnese, who themselves remember decades of bloody conflict, sympathize with the plight of their Muslim friends.
However, others say their patience has been tested. They claimed that the Rohingyas exploit scarce resources and sometimes clash with local residents. In December, hundreds of students at the University of Aceh attacked a temporary shelter for more than 100 Rohingya refugees, forcing them to relocate.
Indonesia is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention and has said it cannot be forced to accept refugees from Myanmar.
According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, more than 3,500 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the risky journey to Southeast Asian countries in 2022. It is estimated that around 1,000 Rohingya have been killed or disappeared since the beginning of the year while trying to make the dangerous sea journey.