At least 250 people missing, including Rohingya, Bangladeshis, after boat sinks in Andaman Sea
The trawler departed from Teknaf in the southern Bangladeshi district of Cox's Bazar carrying a large number of passengers to Malaysia.
PTI
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Overcrowding, strong winds and rough seas caused the vessel to lose control and sink (Representative image/X)
Dhaka, 15 April
At least 250 people, including Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals, were missing after a boat capsized in the Andaman Sea recently on the way to Malaysia, according to the United Nations' refugee and migration agencies.
While
details remained sketchy, Bangladesh Coast Guard spokesperson Lt Com Sabbir
Alam Suzan told The Associated Press on Wednesday that nine people, including
three Rohingya and six Bangladeshis, were rescued on 9 April.
Suzan said
the Bangladesh flag carrier MT Meghna Pride rescued the nine people when the
crew found them floating at sea after the capsize.
When the
boat sank, the status of any search on Wednesday was unclear.
The UN
High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organisation for Migration, in a joint statement, said Tuesday that the trawler departed from Teknaf in the
southern Bangladeshi district of Cox's Bazar carrying a large number of
passengers to Malaysia.
Overcrowding,
strong winds and rough seas caused the vessel to lose control and sink, the
agencies said.
Shari
Nijman, a UNCHR communication officer in Cox's Bazar, said Wednesday that the
agency had no other updates.
Another
coast guard media official told the AP by phone Wednesday that the rescued
people, eight men and one woman, were all safe after being handed over to the
coast guard, who brought them to the police in Teknaf.
The
official said the rescue was not part of any official search operation as it is
outside Bangladesh territory, and that the crew of the MT Meghna Pride saved
the people while it was on its way to Indonesia from Bangladesh's Chittagong.
The
official spoke by phone on condition of anonymity in line with official policy.
UNHCR and
IOM said the disappearance reflected the protracted displacement of Rohingya
people and the absence of durable solutions.
They said
ongoing violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state has made the Rohingya's safe return
to Myanmar uncertain, while limited humanitarian assistance, as well as
restricted access to education and employment in refugee camps, continue to
push vulnerable Rohingya refugees to choose risky sea journeys, often based on
false promises of higher wages and better opportunities abroad.
UNHCR and IOM urged the international community to strengthen funding and solidarity to ensure lifesaving assistance for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, which has sheltered more than 1 million Rohingya from Myanmar.
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Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani
22TH APRIL 2026, DEAR MEMBERS OF MEDIA, ROHINGYA REFUGEE BOAT CAPSIZED IN ANDAMAN SEA: WHAT NEXT? Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization in Malaysia (MERHROM) is deeply saddened by the death of more than 250 Rohingya refugees who fled Cox’s Bazar Refugee Camps in Bangladesh. Ongoing Rohingya Genocide forced the remaining Rohingya in Myanmar fled to the neighboring countries. The impact of the Genocide continues once they reach the refugee camps and neighboring countries. The security problem and dire conditions in the refugee camps forced the Rohingya to flee from refugee camps to ASEAN countries. This raised a big question mark how these refugees can leave the refugee camps as it was guarded by the Bangladesh authority. Who facilitated their journey to the neighboring countries? What was promised to them? How they were treated throughout the journey? What actions has been taken to curb trafficking of the Rohingya refugees? The only way to stop the boat journey is to end the Rohingya Genocide. This is the root cause why Rohingya had to flee. Secondly, the traffickers operating in the region must be prosecuted. The Rohingya who are in desperate situation to save their lives were deceived by these traffickers who facilitate their boat journey, which sacrificed their lives. The world is watching this incident over and over again. This will become a highlight for a while before it disappears like how thousands of Rohingya disappear in the ocean over the years. There is no political will to end the Rohingya Genocide, to restore Rohingya citizenship, to restore democracy in Myanmar, to prosecute the Myanmar military for committing Genocide, to prosecute traffickers, to tighten the security in the refugee camps, and to mobilize humanitarian aid to the refugee camps for the survival of refugees. Without all these, the Rohingya continues to be the victims of human traffickers and lost their lives in the ocean. The death of Rohingya boat people is the manifestation of the ongoing Rohingya Genocide in Rakhine State perpetrated by the Myanmar Military and the Arakan Army (AA). The Rohingya were trapped inside the Arakan State without freedom of movement and humanitarian aid. There is no way out for the Rohingya. Thousands of Rohingya were shoot to death while escaping genocidal attack by the Arakan Army (AA) since previous years. This was widely highlighted by the United Nations, human rights groups and the international media but the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA) continued their genocidal attacked against the Rohingya until today. In 1942, 1978, 1990s, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2024, Rohingya faced massacre, slow burning Genocide subsequently open Rohingya Genocide Rohingya but still no solution to our plights. MERHROM urge for urgent actions from ASEAN, South Asia, United Nations (UN), Organizations of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), European Union (EU), civil society organizations, and the international community to stop the Rohingya genocide and atrocities in Myanmar and to prosecute all in trafficking networks. A comprehensive action plan needs to be developed to curb human trafficking starting from the origin country, transit countries, and destination countries. MERHROM urge the UN Member countries to enforce their Anti Trafficking Law to combat the trans organized crime. As a victim of genocide, the Rohingya continue to suffer wherever they go. Therefore, it is very important that the United Nations and its agencies, including the resettlement countries reach to every victim of human trafficking and leave no one behind. No Genocide should happen in this 21st century. This is a great failure to the human rights and democracy as we are facing three (3) Genocide at the same time for the longest decades. As a victim of genocide, all Rohingya experienced severe trauma without care and support. Therefore, we appeal to the governments of the transit countries to provide humanitarian assistance to the survivors of the Genocide so that they can access necessary services without being punished due to their stateless status. 1>Failure to restore Rohingya citizenship 2>Failure to ensure accountability for perpetrators 3>Failure to dismantle trafficking networks 4>Failure to provide adequate humanitarian protection Thank you, “JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED”. Yours sincerely, Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani President Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization in Malaysia (MERHROM) Tel No: +6016-6827 287 Blog: www.merhrom.wordpress.com Email: rights4rohingyas@gmail.com https://www.facebook.com/zafar.ahmad.92317 https://twitter.com/ZAFARAHMADABDU2 https://www.linkedin.com/in/zafar-ahmad-abdul-ghani-36381061/ https://www.instagram.com/merhrom/ https://www.tiktok.com/@merhrom?lang=en#
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