The crossings took place in the early hours of today. An estimated one thousand desperate people had been abandoned by smugglers but were rescued by the authorities of Kuala Lumpur. 400 more rescued in Aceh. Yesterday another 600 people landed on the coast of Indonesia. In the next few days new waves of refugees expected.

Jakarta (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The authorities of Indonesia and Malaysia have four rescue boats off the coast, carrying about 1,400 Rohingya refugees who had been adrift at sea for at least a week. Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur’s Navies intervened today, just 24 hours after the landing of another 600 exiles on the coast of the Indonesian province of Aceh.

Local sources said that the boats were adrift and abandoned with the people on board , while Thailand, the usual destination for boatloads of desperate people, has recently cracked-down on landings. The Bangkok government order stringent measures after the discovery of a mass grave near the border with Malaysia in which dozens of bodies of Rohingya people were buried.

Of the approximately 1,400 refugees recovered today, a thousand landed on the coast of Malaysia after being abandoned by smugglers in the waters (shallow) off the island of Langkawi, a famous tourist destination. The deputy head of the local police Jamil Ahmed speaks of "three vessels, carrying 1,018 migrants". He adds that the number is likely to increase in the coming days, because other migrants are approaching the island.

In the early hours of today Indonesian authorities rescued another boat off the coast of Aceh, carrying about 400 men, women and children of the Rohingya minority, some of whom are in poor health. Jakarta has asked for aid from fishing vessels to monitor landings, in anticipation of the arrival of new refugees.

Chris Lewa, of Arakan Project, a humanitarian organization that deals with the protection of the rights of the Rohingya people, says that thousands of migrants are currently trapped in the open sea, because of Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur’s crackdown on landings.

Since June 2012, the western state of Rakhine has witnessed violent clashes between Burmese Buddhists and Rohingya causing at least 200 deaths and 250 thousand displaced people. According to United Nations estimates, there are still 800 thousand members of the Muslim minority in Myanmar, who the government considers illegal immigrants and who are therefore subject to abuse and persecution.

To date, there are still 140 thousand displaced persons confined in refugee centers which, as according to the Burmese government must accept the classification of Bengali - and obtain citizenship - or remain in the camps "for life".  Within these camps they are deprived of basic rights, such as health care, education or work. The Catholic Church in Burma has intervened on several occasions against the marginalization and neglect faced by the Muslim minority.

• INDONESIA
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• MALAYSIA
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• MYANMAR
• rohyngia
• refugees
• minority