Children among dead as stranded Rohingya face starvation at sea, families say - CNN

CNN  — 

Many Rohingya are feared dormant astatine oversea much than 3 weeks aft their vessel became stranded disconnected the Indian coast, wherever astatine slightest 160 radical stay aboard connected the brink of starvation, household members and the United Nations’ exile bureau said.

Mohammed Rezuwan Khan, whose sister and 5-year-old niece are connected the vessel, told CNN Wednesday that 2 children and a pistillate had died, adding that those inactive live person “no water, nutrient oregon medicine.”

“We are highly acrophobic and privation them to beryllium rescued. It’s increasing progressively hard for them to survive,” said Khan, adding that helium past spoke to the boat’s skipper connected Sunday.

The boat, presently adjacent the Indian territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands successful the Bay of Bengal, has reportedly been adrift since precocious November erstwhile its motor chopped out.

It is thought to person been heading to Malaysia from Bangladesh, wherever astir 1 cardinal Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority, unrecorded successful exile camps aft fleeing unit successful their autochthonal Myanmar.

CNN cannot independently verify whether immoderate deaths person occurred connected the boat. A United Nations spokesperson said determination were “unverified reports suggesting astatine slightest 20 radical whitethorn person already died during this shocking ordeal.”

Babar Baloch, an Asia spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), urged some India and Sri Lanka to assistance rescue those aboard.

“Quick enactment is needed to prevention lives and debar further deaths,” Baloch said. “We repetition our informing that inaction from states to prevention lives is resulting successful much quality misery and tragedies with each passing day.”

A radical of Southeast Asian lawmakers has besides urged neighboring countries to “urgently rescue” the boat, according to a statement from ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights.

The entreaty comes days aft the Sri Lankan Navy rescued a boat carrying 104 Rohingya refugees.

CNN has reached retired to the Indian and Sri Lankan navies for comment.

Baloch said the UN believes immoderate 2,000 Rohingya person taken the risky oversea travel this twelvemonth alone.

Many permission from the overcrowded exile camps of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, wherever conditions are dire and women are astatine hazard of intersexual battle and violence.

The camps person swelled implicit the past 5 years arsenic hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled a brutal run of sidesplitting and arson by the Myanmar subject successful occidental Rakhine state.

Life astatine the camps has its ain dangers. Fires are predominant and person destroyed hundreds of homes, portion floods during the monsoon play often hitch retired the poorly built huts.

Desperate to leave, galore wage amerciable traffickers to smuggle them retired of the camps.

Khan said his sister was successful hunt of a amended beingness for her daughter, and decided to effort the unsafe oversea travel retired of Bangladesh connected November 25.

“The Rohingya radical are increasing desperate, they are consenting to hazard their lives,” Khan said.

The perilous voyage from Cox’s Bazaar to Malaysia can instrumentality weeks, and conditions astatine oversea are challenging.

Many connected the stranded vessel are drinking rainfall h2o erstwhile they can, Khan said, adding immoderate are increasing truthful desperate, they are drinking h2o from the ocean.

Rahan Uddin said his 17-year-old member was besides connected the boat, having boarded successful the anticipation of uncovering a occupation and earning capable wealth to assistance with his ailing parents’ aesculapian bills.

“We are precise acrophobic astir him and his safety,” Uddin said. “We don’t cognize if helium is live oregon not.”

While each countries are bound by planetary instrumentality to rescue radical successful distress astatine sea, swift enactment is not ever forthcoming – peculiarly wherever Rohingya refugees are concerned.

In December past year, Indonesia agreed to help repair a stranded vessel packed with much than 100 Rohingya refugees disconnected its coast, but did not let its passengers to question refuge successful the country.

In March 2020, a larger vessel carrying astir 300 Rohingya spent much than six months adrift astatine sea. Its passengers were turned distant by respective countries earlier yet being accepted by Indonesia. By then, astatine slightest 30 radical including women and children had died. Many surviving women said they were assaulted connected committee the vessel.

Last year, India’s Supreme Court ruled that Rohingya refugees successful India could beryllium forcibly returned to Myanmar.

India is not enactment to the UN Refugee Convention and lacks a nationalist exile extortion structure, according to the UNHCR. Rohingya refugees are often labeled amerciable immigrants taxable to deportation from India.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s authorities has been criticized for trying to nonstop backmost Rohingya implicit the years.

Khan said helium wants the planetary assemblage “to delight spot america arsenic quality beings.”

“Let our radical disembark from the boat,” helium said. “Please prevention the Rohingya. Otherwise, we whitethorn die.”