Situation for Rohingya abandoned at sea 'extremely critical'

As thousands of people flee their homes in Africa and the Middle East to board boats across the Mediterranean for Europe, a mirror image is playing out much closer to home.

Situation for Rohingya abandoned at sea 'extremely critical'Situation for Rohingya abandoned at sea 'extremely critical'

Situation for Rohingya abandoned at sea 'extremely critical'

As thousands of people flee their homes in Africa and the Middle East to board boats across the Mediterranean for Europe, a mirror image is playing out much closer to home.

As many as eight thousand long-persecuted Rohingyas from Myanmar and Bangladeshis are stranded on boats in the waters of the Andaman Sea and the Strait of Malacca.

Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand are all pushing the boats back to sea after more than two thousand people landed in Malaysia and Indonesia.

The head of The Arakan Project that advocates for the Rohingyas, Thailand-based Chris Lewa, tells Ron Sutton it's hard to know the true dimensions of the crisis.

(Click on the audio tab above to hear the full interview)

 


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By Ron Sutton


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