20 feared dead after boat with 160 Rohingya stranded in India's Andaman Sea

By SM Najmus Sakib

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) – At least 20 Rohingya refugees are feared dead and some 160 others, including women and children, are stranded in India's Andaman Sea with no food and potable water, said rights groups and activists.

The stranded boat had left Cox’s Bazar coast for Malaysia some three weeks ago and was stranded due to engine failure.

“We have had no more information since yesterday (Tuesday) evening. The satellite phone on the boat has been switched off. We are unable to gather information. We also heard the Indian Navy would rescue them but were unsure whether they were rescued,” Nay San Lwin, a Rohingya activist, told Anadolu Agency.

Lwin, also coordinator of Free Rohingya Coalition, a global network of Rohingya, lamented: “They all will die of starvation if not rescued immediately.”

The UN refugee agency repeated its appeal to all responsible states to rescue those in distress and adrift on boats, allowing them to safely disembark in line with legal obligations and humanitarian traditions.

“It (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) remains concerned about reports of another boat in distress in the Bay of Bengal, near the Andaman and Nicobar Islands,” UNHCR said in a statement earlier on Monday.

Some 161 refugees have been reported dead or missing at sea in 2022. Quick action is needed to save lives, according to UNHCR.

According to media reports and information from human rights organizations, two other boats carrying Rohingya refugees in the ASEAN waters over the past few weeks have been rescued.

One boat carrying 154 refugees was rescued by a Vietnamese oil service vessel on Dec. 8 and handed over to the Myanmar navy, while the other boat carrying 104 refugees was rescued by the Sri Lanka navy on Dec. 18 at Kankesanturai Harbor.

Md. Nur Khan Liton, a prominent human rights defender, told Anadolu Agency that at least three to four engine-run boats left the Cox’s Bazar coast in November with at least 400 Rohingya refugees onboard.

Refugees undertake perilous sea voyages to reach Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia, he added.

“These people (Rohingya) have chosen it (sea voyage) out of frustration. They are deprived of education, free movement, and healthcare in the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar of Bangladesh or in Myanmar.”

On Tuesday, parliamentarians from Southeast Asia also urged ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) member states and other countries in the region to urgently rescue a boat carrying up to 200 Rohingya refugees, including women and children.

Bangladesh is providing shelter to 1.2 million Rohingya refugees on its southeast coast of Cox’s Bazar since a refugee influx in 2017 due to a Myanmar military crackdown.