The refugees were part of a group of 81 that was transferred from Aceh in June. They had been staying at the Bukit Panembahan Hotel on Jl. Jamin Ginting – a temporary shelter managed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), where refugees await, at times for years on end, resettlement to a third country.

IOM Indonesia chief of mission Louis Hoffmann said in an official statement that 51 refugees had left their shelter as of Aug. 31, after they were recorded in the program.

“It is suspected that the refugees have left Medan in order, most probably, to reunite with family in Malaysia,” he said recently.

As a country of transit, Indonesia often hosts refugees looking to reach a third country such as Australia, often through human trafficking rings that put them on boats to navigate life-threatening journeys at sea.

While thousands still remain in shelters across the country, some – especially among the Rohingya – seek out ways to leave for places where their migrant communities are flourishing, including in Malaysia.

Hoffmann said that the IOM supported the Indonesian government’s decision to relocate Rohingya refugees to Medan, where they have access to a structured support program that includes accommodation, a modest living allowance, health care, mental health and psychosocial support, education and other referral services.

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