By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BANGKOK, Thailand– Hundreds of Rohingya, Burmese Muslim, refugees are believed dead after being pushed back into the sea by Thai authorities, according to human rights activists based in Thailand.

Image courtesy of The New York Times.

A report was issued stating that as many as 200 people are missing, while more than 300 others are believed to have died after they were set adrift by Thai soldiers. It is said by one survivor, that some of the refugees were sent back with their hands tied behind their backs in boats without engines.

The United Nations’ Refugee Agency has also voiced its concern about the reports and urged the government to investigate the incidents. In an official statement by Kitty McKinsey, spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees in Bangkok, she said, “We request the Thai government to take all measures necessary to ensure that the lives of Rohingya are not at risk and they are treated in accordance with humanitarian standards.”

Thai military authorities have denied these accusations, and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, has promised a full investigation. In a statement to the public, the Thai Foreign Ministry said it was “investigating and verifying all the facts and surrounding circumstances.” The ministry added that while the Thai government was dedicated to protecting its sea borders from all illegal activities, including illegal immigration, “we are committed to maintaining our traditional adherence to humanitarian principles and the protection of human rights”.

Vejjajiva told journalists that Thailand would investigate allegations that the Thai navy set hundreds of Rohingya asylum seekers adrift. The country’s defense minister will investigate these accusations, and report back to the Prime Minister with any findings as soon as possible.

In describing the overall situation, Paul Critchley, who runs the Bangladesh program for the aid group, Doctors Without Borders, he said, “Over the last few months we have treated victims of violence, people who claim to have been beaten by the police, claim to have been beaten by members of the host population, by people they’ve been living next to for many years.” He went on to say that, “We have treated patients for beatings, for machete wounds and for rape,” and the circumstance is now a “humanitarian crisis” now that the atrocities continue and in light of the most recent string of horrific events.

Since October, the unofficial Kutupalong makeshift camp with its dirt paths, flimsy shacks and open sewers has grown by 6,000 people to nearly 30,000, with 2,000 arrivals in January alone. There are an estimated 250,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh. They do not have citizenship, and are subject to abuse and forced labor, and where they cannot travel, marry or practice their religion freely. Yes, many continue to flee Myanmar in fear of repression and in search of a better life.  About 28,000 of them have been officially recognized by Bangladesh, and documented as refugees. They receive food and other assistance in a camp administered by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and have not been subject to the abuses and forced returns described by other Rohingya. But, the government has not allowed the agency to register new arrivals since 1993.

A Photograph of Women who suffered beatings and abuse in Myanmar. Image courtesy of The New York Times.

The most recent incident and possible deaths to hundreds sheds light on the fact that the problem has worsened, many human rights activists are trying to call attention to the issue to get other foreign involvement.

For more information, please see:

The New York Times – Burmese Refugees Persecuted in Bangladesh – 20 February 2010

World News – Persecution of Burmese Refugees – 20 February 2010

Open Democracy – Bangladesh government accused of crackdown on Burmese refugees – 18 February 2010

Asia Times Online – Bilateral Repression for Myanmar’s Rohingya – 22 February 2010