00:00 Tragedy struck as a wooden boat carrying an estimated 150 Rohingya refugees capsized off
00:13 the coast of Indonesia's Aceh province, sparking fears of multiple fatalities.
00:18 The vessel encountered distress approximately 19 km from the shores of Kuala Lumpur on Aceh's
00:24 west coast, succumbing to turbulent seas on Wednesday morning.
00:28 Amid the chaos, six individuals, four women and two men, were plucked from the water by
00:33 Acehnese fishermen and ushered to safety in a nearby shelter.
00:37 Tragically, it is believed that the majority of the presumed casualties were women and
00:41 children unable to navigate the waters and swept away by relentless currents.
00:46 Meanwhile, at least 69 Rohingya refugees are reported to have been rescued.
00:51 Footage captured by local fishermen at the scene circulated widely on Indonesian social
00:55 media depicted survivors perched on the overturned hull, all appearing to be male.
01:00 Emaciated and clad in shorts, they frantically signalled for rescue, pleading with the fishermen
01:05 for assistance.
01:06 Amiruddin, a community leader from the Aceh Barat district encompassing Kuala Bubon, reported
01:12 the dispatch of a search and rescue boat by Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency
01:17 on Wednesday.
01:18 The cause of the boat's sinking remains unclear, yet vessels ferrying refugees from Bangladesh's
01:23 camps often endure sub-par conditions, overcrowding and limited amenities.
01:29 This tragic incident echoes a similar disaster in August 2023, where 17 Rohingya refugees
01:34 lost their lives in the Bay of Bengal.
01:36 Since then, approximately 1 million Rohingya have languished in congested camps in Bangladesh,
01:42 exacerbated by deteriorating conditions in Myanmar post the February 2021 military coup,
01:47 prompting many to seek refugee elsewhere.
01:50 However, the reception for Rohingya refugees in Aceh has shifted in recent years, with
01:54 growing resistance among locals towards their arrival, particularly those en route to Malaysia.
02:00 At the end of February, Malaysia counted 108,500 registered Rohingya refugees, according to
02:06 the UNHCR.
02:08 This sentiment culminated in December last year, when the Indonesian Navy repelled a
02:11 boat carrying Rohingya refugees as it approached Aceh's coast, reflecting resentment over
02:16 perceived spikes in boat arrivals.
02:19 While Indonesia isn't a signatory to the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees, it was once
02:23 viewed as more sympathetic to the Rohingya compared to neighbouring countries like Malaysia
02:28 or Thailand, where authorities have historically barred boats from landing.
02:37 [BLANK_AUDIO]
