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South East Asia: Inaction paves the way for future refugee disaster
Refugee crisis: Sheriff Elsayed-Ali, Amnesty Internationalâs head of refugee and migrantsâ rights, speaks during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, on June 15, 2015
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Refugee crisis: Sheriff Elsayed-Ali, Amnesty Internationalâs head of refugee and migrantsâ rights, speaks during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, on June 15, 2015. The human rights watchdog has issued a report suggesting that world leaders have abandoned millions of refugees to "an unbearable existence" and left thousands more to die by failing to provide basic human protections. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein) (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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span class="inline inline-center">Refugee crisis: Sheriff Elsayed-Ali, Amnesty International's head of refugee and migrants' rights, speaks during a press conference in Beirut, Lebanon, on June 15, 2015. The human rights watchdog has issued a report suggesting that world leaders have abandoned millions of refugees to "an unbearable existence" and left thousands more to die by failing to provide basic human protections. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
South East Asian governments have so far failed to take sufficient action to protect refugees and migrants, one month after a key summit to address the crisis that saw thousands of people stranded on boats over the past months, Amnesty International said in an open letter on Wednesday.
The Special Meeting on Irregular Migration in the Indian Ocean, held in Bangkok on May 27, 2015, brought together 17 countries to discuss the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal.
'One month after the Bangkok summit, there are few signs that governments are doing what is necessary to address the desperate plight of migrants and refugees. There's still inadequate coordination on search and rescue operations, and a lack of clear protection measures for people who have landed on their shores,' said Richard Bennett, Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific director.
The International Organization for Migration estimated in May that there were as many as 8,000 people ' refugees and migrants mainly from Myanmar and Bangladesh ' stranded on boats close to Thailand.
Indonesia and Malaysia have since committed to providing temporary protection for up to a year to 7,000 people, on the condition that third governments resettle or repatriate them.
The next sailing season will likely start in October when seas are calmer and refugees and migrants can again take to boats to leave their home countries.
'Inaction now could pave the way for disaster later. Although it might look like the worst of the immediate crisis at sea is over, it is likely to escalate again once the sailing season starts. Those facing persecution in their home countries will continue to flee to seek asylum," Bennett said.
"It is crucial that regional governments put measures in place to ensure that more lives are not lost, and ensure there are safe and legal means for seeking asylum or migrating,' he said. (hhr)
