Missing Rohingya Refugees Found Alive on Malaysian Islet

Twenty-six Rohingya refugees, who had been feared drowned while attempting to swim ashore on the Malaysian resort island of Langkawi, were found alive hidden in the bushes on the neighboring island, a senior coastguard official said on Monday.

Malaysia does not accept refugee status, but the Muslim-majority country is a popular place for Rohingya Muslims seeking a safer existence after fleeing the military repression in Myanmar in 2017 and, more recently, refugee camps in Bangladesh, reports Reuters.

Late on Saturday, a Rohingya swam ashore from a tiny boat off the west coast of Langkawi. Officials were concerned that the remainder of the party might sink whilst attempting to find the shore, but they were later found on an island just off the coast.

“They were found hiding in the bushes on the island,” Mohd Zubil Mat Som, director-general of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said in a text message.

The authorities have detained the refugees. Two more Rohingya refugees have also been detained for alleged trafficking in human beings, Mohd Zubil added.

The refugees were thought to have been moved to a tiny boat to infiltrate into Malaysia, having sailed on a "motherboat" carrying hundreds of Rohingya from Bangladesh, the coastguard official said.

269 Rohingya, who arrived in Langkawi on a crippled plane, had been detained by Malaysia last month. At the moment, Mohd Zubil had claimed that thousands of passengers on the boat were thought to have died on a voyage that lasted four months.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said that Malaysia was unwilling to take over Rohingya last month, blaming a weak economy ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic.