In a statement on Tuesday the government of the Philippines has offered refuge to asylum-seekers stranded on boats in the Andaman Sea. Herminio Coloma, a spokesperson for the President said the Philippines would continue its tradition of extending “humanitarian assistance” to “ ‘boat people’” and “continue to do [their] share in saving lives under existing and long-standing mechanisms pursuant to our commitments under the [UN] convention.”
While the Philippines is a long way off from where many of the boats are currently stranded, it is thus far the only South-East Asian country to step forward and offer a possible haven for the asylum-seekers, many of whom have been stranded on boats for months. Joe Lowry, spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration said, “It is a hopeful sign. We hope the governments in the region would lift their game as well.” Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand have now turned back boats, adopting a strict policy on refusing entry to ships carrying asylum-seekers.
However, despite their governments’ policies, another group of 370 Rohingya and Bangladeshi asylum-seekers was rescued by a group of Indonesian fishermen today. This latest rescue included at least 50 women and children, who were reported to have been stranded at sea for weeks with no food or water.
Currently, ministers from Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are attending emergency talks in Kuala Lumpur to address the crisis. Myanmar, which by most accounts is the largest source of the asylum-seekers in question, is not in attendance.