The Andaman Sea is thought to be the location of over 160 Rohingya migrants who escaped shelters in Bangladesh when their boat’s engine failed.
The Rohingya Human Rights Initiative (RHRI) was able to get in touch with one of the refugees and receive the coordinates that revealed the ship was sailing southeast of the Andaman Islands in the direction of Aceh in Indonesia.
‘Since communication was established on Wednesday, we have no information regarding their current location…’ RHRI Director Sabber Kyaw Min spoke on the phone with PTI to say, ‘We have appealed to all organisations working with such sea-borne refugees to try and support these people.’
However, neither the Indian Coast Guard nor the Unified Andamans & Nicobar Command were able to independently verify RHRI’s assertion.
Through WhatsApp, the Command’s spokeswoman stated: ‘We have no information.’
It looks that the Rohingya boat is outside of Indian waters based on the position provided by RHRI.
According to Min on Friday, there are 120 women and children and 40 adult men among the migrants.
The Rohingya refugees have left Balukali, another heavily populated refugee camp nearby, as well as Kutupalong, the largest refugee camp in the world located in Ukhiya in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazaar.
Food, water, and safety are urgently needed by the refugees, according to Min.
Asaduzzaman Khan, the home minister for Bangladesh, told PTI over the phone, ‘There are certain media allegations, but I am not aware of any such occurrence.’
In a foresighted statement last week, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) spoke of the risks involved with such crossings.
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