Increasingly concerned about the plight of migrants and refugees stranded in the Andaman Sea and Straits of Malacca, the top authorities of the United Nations have spoken separately to leaders in Southeast Asia reiterating the need to protect lives and uphold the obligation of rescue at sea.
According to a statement issued on May 17, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson have made phone calls to the authorities concerned in Southeast Asia in a bid to discuss over the issue.
In recent days, the UN secretary-general has spoken to the Prime Ministers of Malaysia, Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, and Thailand, Prayuth Chan-ocha, added the statement.
The deputy secretary-general has also spoken to the Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali, and the Deputy-Minister for Multilateral Affairs of Indonesia, Hasan Kleib.
“In their discussions with leaders in the region, they reiterated the need to protect lives and uphold international law. Furthermore, they stressed the need for the timely disembarkation of migrants. They also urged leaders to uphold the obligation of rescue at sea and maintain the prohibition on refoulement,” the statement read.
Refoulement is the forcible return of individuals to their country of origin where they could face persecution.
It went on to say the secretary-general and deputy secretary-general also encouraged leaders to participate in the upcoming regional meeting in Bangkok on the migrant situation.
“They hope that the meeting will lead to comprehensive outcomes at the regional and international levels,” said the statement, underscoring that the United Nations stands ready to assist all efforts to address the situation, including at the proposed meeting.
According to a report of The Nation, in reply, the Thai PM told the UN chief that his government was closely monitoring the migrant crisis and providing necessary humanitarian assistance to them.
"Thai officials found the latest group last week and gave assistance to them by fixing their boat engine, giving fuel, food, water and medicine, as they wanted to go to another country," said a spokesperson quoting the Thai PM.
Thailand is set to host a special meeting on Irregular Migration in the Indian Ocean on May 29 in Bangkok with participants from 15 affected nations such as Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Bangladesh.
Prayut told Ban that representatives of these countries and international organisations wwould exchange views and seek solutions to solve the problem constructively.
The statement by the top two UN officials comes in the wake of a strong call issued this past Friday by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, who urged governments in Southeast Asia to take swift action to protect the lives of migrants stranded in precarious maritime conditions and warned against the policy of pushing boats back out to sea.
“I am appalled at reports that Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia have been pushing boats full of vulnerable migrants back out to sea, which will inevitably lead to many avoidable deaths,” the UN rights chief said. “The focus should be on saving lives, not further endangering them.”
While Zeid praised Indonesia for disembarking 582 migrants on May 10, and Malaysia for disembarking 1,018 the following day, he said the “incomprehensible and inhumane” policy of “pushbacks” was endangering lives.
He also spoke against countries' plans to criminalise vulnerable migrants and asylum seekers who have crossed borders irregularly.
“Governments in South-East Asia need to respond to this crisis from the premise that migrants, regardless of their legal status, how they arrive at borders, or where they come from, are people with rights that must be upheld,” he said. “Criminalising such vulnerable people, including children, and placing them in detention is not the solution.”
Noting that around 6,000 Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants are believed to remain stranded at sea in precarious conditions in the region, the high commissioner said the individual circumstances of all migrants and asylum seekers at international borders should be assessed, and appropriate protection provided according to international human rights and refugee law, including ensuring that the principle of non-refoulement is upheld.
He called for further action against traffickers and abusive smugglers and welcomed the announcement that Thailand would host a regional meeting on irregular migration in the Indian Ocean on May 29.
In discussions on comprehensive responses, the regional meeting would seek to address root causes, one of which, he said, was the importance of addressing the serious human rights situation in Rakhine state, in Myanmar.