By P Prem Kumar
KUALA LUMPUR
The Malaysian and Indonesian navies have found stranded boats carrying Muslim Rohingya migrants and are transferring them to vessels to be brought to shore, according to an official Friday.
A spokesman for the Malaysian Navy Department who requested anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to media told Anadolu Agency that four Malaysian vessels would carry the Rohingya, while three more would be on standby.
He added, however, that the Bangladeshi migrants onboard the boats would be separated from the Rohingya, as shelter would only be given for members of the ethnic minority who the United Nations considers to be the world’s most persecuted.
"The Bangladeshis would be taken in another vessel, given food and medication, if needed, before being deported back to their country," he said.
The search and rescue operations are set to continue until all the navies have located all the boats in the sea, according to the spokesman.
Prime Minister Najib Razak had ordered the navy to launch the operations off the country’s western coast Thursday, after Malaysia and Indonesia agreed to offer temporary shelter to thousands of migrants stranded on the Andaman Sea - but only if the international community agrees to then resettle them after one year.
Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla has also clarified that his country would shelter Rohingya – most of whom are thought to originate from Myanmar -- for one year, while the Bangladeshis would be sent back home.
Malaysia's foreign minister, Anifah Aman, said in a statement after attending a meeting in Myanmar’s capital that Nay Pyi Taw was willing to give its full cooperation in resolving the boat people crisis.
Many of the migrants on the boats in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea are Rohingya Muslims originating from Western Rakhine State fleeing Myanmar - Myanmar, however, does not recognize the Rohingya, preferring to refer to them as Bengali, which suggests they are from neighboring Bangladesh.
"The Myanmar government will continue to provide aid and implement economic development and social programs in the region," Aman said.
Malaysia is the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and was instrumental in Myanmar becoming part of the bloc.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, who was also present at the event in Myanmar's capital, Nay Pyi Taw, said in a statement that Myanmar's government had welcomed "Indonesia's offer to build Rakhine in an inclusive and non-discriminative manner."
There was no explanation as to how Indonesia was to take part in any building - or development - of the area, however the two countries also agreed to increase efforts to reach trade targets of $1 billion in 2016. Marsudi also offered trade cooperation in the areas of palm oil, fertilizers and farming equipment.
The meeting was arranged to inform the country of Malaysia and Indonesia's decision to temporarily take in boatloads of migrants.
On Thursday, a group of United Nations human rights experts welcomed the decision not to pushback migrants and asylum seekers arriving in the two countries’ territorial waters.
They also urged the international community to assist the countries affected by supporting financially and materially their efforts to protect the human rights of all migrants.
Myanmar has been under intense pressure to help stem the flood that has been attempting to land on Malaysian, Thai, and Indonesian shores following Thailand's efforts to clamp down on smuggling rings in its south.
Many of the boat's occupants have fled Myanmar's Rakhine alleging brutality by the country’s military leaders, some have left refugee camps in Bangladesh’s Cox Bazar region, while others claim to have been forced onto the boats by people smugglers – ransoms then demanded from their families back home for their safe passage.
On Thursday, Myanmar said it will attend a June 29 meeting in Thailand to address the region's growing migrant crisis.
The attendance had been in doubt, despite growing diplomatic pressure.
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