Rohingya crisis in Indonesia a ‘ticking time bomb’ if political indifference, misinformation continue: analysts

The orange truck crammed with 75 Rohingya survivors of a capsized boat was told to hurry along by Indonesian police in Beureugang, West Aceh, as dozens of angry villagers gave chase, shouting “[we] reject the presence of refugees here!”

Observers warn of a “ticking time bomb”, saying worse conflict between locals and refugees is inevitable without a concerted effort to counteract the false narratives against the Rohingya.

Khan, who acts as an interpreter for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), was on the ground last month to help with the rescue of the 151 refugees aboard the capsized boat, working in tandem with Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas).

Al Hussain, Basarnas’ Aceh chief, said his teams were doing their best but were stretched thin. “The boat was headed back into open sea after local residents refused to let it come ashore [on March 19]. We were only alerted [it had capsized] afterwards and arrived on the scene two days later.”

Between March 20 and 21, Basarnas managed to rescue 75 Rohingya refugees: 44 men, 22 women and nine children who were taken to a temporary shelter.

Rescue teams scouring the coast later discovered around 20 bodies, with the rest being declared missing. UNHCR has said the 76 lives lost represents the highest toll for an incident of its kind in Indonesia this year.

“Bodies are continuing to surface, most of which have started to decompose. We picked up a further 10 bodies from the waters around Aceh Jaya between March 24 and 25,” Hussain said.

“The survivors are still grieving for their loved ones lost at sea,” Khan said. “I spoke to one survivor who lost seven of her family members.”

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Indonesia picks up dozens of Rohingya refugees in dramatic sea