UN chief Ban Ki-moon says save migrant boat people, deal with cause of flight
Ban says 'It's important to save lives' when addressing the humanitarian refugee crisis during a visit to Vietnam
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday urged Southeast Asian nations to deal with the causes behind a growing humanitarian crisis that has forced thousands of Rohingya from Myanmar and Bangladeshi migrants to flee by sea, leaving many still stranded in boats.
Ban said he has been discussing the emergency with regional leaders in Myanmar, Malaysia and Thailand, among others, and urged them to provide search and rescue operations and options for resettlement and reintegration.
“It’s important to save human lives,” he said on a visit to Hanoi, Vietnam. But it’s also important “not to send them back to a dangerous circumstance or situation.”
More than 3,600 migrants – about half of them Bangladeshi and the others minority Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar – have landed ashore in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand since May 10. Thousands more are believed to be trapped at sea, and the United Nations has warned that time is running out.
Four Malaysian navy ships began searching for boats on Friday, according to navy chief Abdul Aziz Jaafar, who said three helicopters and three other ships were on standby. The Malaysian search is a positive sign, but the country’s operation is limited to the country’s territorial waters.
