A regional crisis with roots in Myanmar

As many as 8,000 Rohingya fleeing persecution in Myanmar and Bangladeshis seeking better lives elsewhere are stranded in boats in the Andaman Ocean and Malacca Straits.
Worse, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia are refusing to take them in, and are instead pushing them back to the ocean, where starvation and possibly death await.
In 2009 Thailand came under close scrutiny for towing out to sea a boat carrying 300 Rohingya seeking to land on our shores. About 100 were later rescued at sea; the rest remain unaccounted for.
To this day the governments of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia feel no shame in maintaining such cold-hearted policies.
In 2009 Thai officials were keen to dismiss the boats packed with Rohingya as a one-off occurrence, but in fact that was only the start of a major wave of human trafficking in which Thailand’s southernmost provinces have become transit points.
After the discovery in the far South of scores of shallow graves containing the remains of suspected migrants – some of which are just stone’s throw away from military and police outposts – the region’s governments are belatedly coming together to seek solutions.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is finally pushing for Myanmar to engage in talks with Thailand and Malaysia over this problem. The roots of this crisis lie in the persecution of the Rohingya, which began with their being stripped of citizenship by Burma in the early 1980s.
It is not yet clear whether Thailand or other regional governments have the courage to tell Myanmar’s quasi-military rulers that their policy is hurting neighbouring countries.
In the meantime Thailand is mulling temporary camps for Rohingya and other illegal migrants. The idea is long overdue and could do much to curb the scourge of people-trafficking. Better yet, Thailand should invite the United Nations refugee agency and international NGOs to assist in running the shelters to ensure transparency and accountability.
The alternative for Thailand and its neighbours is to carry on with business as usual, in which case the problem will only get worse. As things stand, Thailand’s reputation on human trafficking is already at low ebb.
While Thai authorities prefer to view the Rohingya as illegal aliens, the international community sees them as a stateless people vulnerable to near-slavery in certain business sectors such as the Thai fishing industry.
Rohingya are traded from Myanmar and shipped by boat to the Thai shore, then moved to scores of secret holding centres scattered in woods along the Malaysian border. There they wait to cross into Malaysia, where they have been promised work and better lives.
Each stage of their transit costs more money, and if they can’t make the payments, they get sold to toil on fishing trawlers. Female victims have recounted being sold to brothels.
Sadly, Thai authorities have played a role in this heartless cycle. After making arrests in response to news reports or pressure from rights groups, corrupt officials have reportedly sold “rescued” migrants back to the traffickers.
Some observers suggest we crack down on these migrants by charging them with illegal entry, but any such legal means ignore the humanitarian nature of this problem, which is rooted in Myanmar’s refusal to grant citizenship to the Muslim Rohingya – despite their having lived in the country for generations.
Moreover, Thailand’s immigration detention facilities have capacity for a relatively small number of people and would be overwhelmed by the thousands of refugees now on the move.
We could forcibly repatriate these migrants back to Myanmar, but that would be a gross violation of international norms.
Though it might upset those Thais who hold xenophobic attitudes towards the migrants, setting up camps and permitting outside help is morally the right thing to do. It’s also the most practical option to stem the damage being done to the country’s reputation.
But temporary shelters can only be a stopgap measure. Myanmar’s leadership must be made to realise that the actions it takes now in dealing with the Rohingya will define how the world perceives our countries for years to come.