The UNHCR refugee agency, in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration, announced on Friday that more than 70 Rohingya individuals are feared dead or missing after a boat they were aboard capsized off the coast of Indonesia's Aceh province. Fortunately, 75 people have been rescued.

If confirmed, this incident would mark the largest loss of life among Rohingya migrants this year, according to a joint statement issued by the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration.

The alarm was raised on Wednesday when local fishermen discovered six survivors. According to reports from the fishing community in Aceh, these survivors were found standing on the overturned hull of the boat, which had capsized due to high tides.

Rohingya people have been fleeing Myanmar, where they face persecution and are denied citizenship, for years. They are often considered foreign by the Buddhist-majority population of Myanmar and are subjected to various forms of abuse.

Last year alone, more than 2,300 Rohingya individuals arrived in Indonesia, as per data provided by the UNHCR, surpassing the combined arrivals of the previous four years.

The UNHCR reported in January that the toll for 2023 saw at least 569 Rohingya individuals dead or missing while attempting to escape from Myanmar or Bangladesh, marking the highest number since 2014.

Babar Baloch, a spokesperson for UNHCR Asia, informed Reuters on Friday that there were 151 people aboard the ill-fated boat. Local authorities have managed to evacuate 75 survivors, leaving the remainder “presumed dead or missing.”

Faisal Rahman, UNHCR's protection associate in Aceh, stated to Reuters that the rescued Rohingya survivors were in good condition and were currently accommodated at a Red Cross facility in West Aceh.

Requests for comments from the immigration agency in Aceh remained unanswered at the time of reporting.

BOB Post