The UN on Tuesday raised alarm over the significant rise in the number of ethnic Rohingya Muslims lost at sea.
The UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said that more than 3,500 Rohingyas had attempted “deadly sea crossings” in 39 boats last year, most of which had left from Myanmar and Bangladesh.
“This represents a 360% increase on the year before, when some 700 people made these journeys,” UNHCR spokesperson Shabia Mantoo told media persons gathered in Geneva.
The spokesperson added that the UNHCR’s requests to maritime authorities in the region “to rescue and disembark people in distress” were largely “ignored or have gone unheeded with many boats adrift for weeks.”
"More than 3,500 desperate #Rohingya attempted deadly sea crossings in 39 boats in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal in 2022.
— UN Geneva (@UNGeneva) January 17, 2023
We urge States to abide by their international legal obligations." - @Refugees spokeswoman @Shabia_M pic.twitter.com/72delqmbjo
She warned that without concrete measures taken through regional cooperation, many more Rohingya Muslims would die trying to make the perilous journey.
According to the latest data issued by the multilateral forum, at least 348 people died or went missing at sea in 2022, making it “one of the deadliest years” since 2014.
Future Steps
Mantoo noted that there was a “growing sense of desperation and anxiety about the future” and the Rohingya’s “hope for security [and] protection.”
She added that some of them were “wanting to reunite with family members,” while others’ vulnerabilities were “being exploited by traffickers or smugglers luring with false promises and false hope.”
Bangladesh’s Armed Police Battalion is committing extortion, arbitrary arrests, and harassment of Rohingya refugees who already face violence.
— Human Rights Watch (@hrw) January 17, 2023
These abuses have left refugees suffering at the hands of the very forces who are supposed to protect them. https://t.co/88a4wX0twI pic.twitter.com/d0zwLCgvxb
To this end, Mantoo stressed that the refugee community required international protection. She also insisted that they “not be deported,” but “be provided with protection and assistance.”
She went on to praise the people, communities, and government of Bangladesh for their efforts in hosting and caring for displaced Rohingyas, but added that the refugees will require even more support to face their tribulations.
Who are the Rohingyas?
The Rohingyas are an ethnic Muslim minority group, around one million of whom have sought refuge in countries like Bangladesh.
However, for decades now, both Bangladesh and Myanmar have refused to acknowledge them as citizens and each insists that they are “illegal immigrants” of the other, effectively rendering them stateless.
The community has also been trying to gain refuge in India, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia for years by making dangerous journeys via sea and land.