LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia (AP) — More than 260 weak and hungry Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, have landed in Indonesia in two boats, officials said Monday.
Police and military officers are working with the U.N. refugee agency and the local government in West Pereulak in East Aceh to gather more information about the refugees, who arrived Sunday evening, and keep them safe, East Aceh police chief Nova Suryandaru said.
“We will follow up their presence by coordinating with the UNHCR for further action,” Suryandaru said.
More than 300 Rohingya refugees have landed in East Aceh since last February.
About 1 million Rohingya, who are predominantly Muslim, are living in camps in Bangladesh after leaving Myanmar. They include about 740,000 who fled a brutal “clearance campaign” in 2017 by Myanmar’s security forces, who were accused of committing mass rapes and killings.
The Rohingya minority face widespread discrimination in Myanmar and most are denied citizenship.
Indonesia has appealed for help from the international community following a sharp rise in the number of Rohingya leaving the overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh since last year.
Indonesia, like nearby Thailand and Malaysia, is not a signatory to the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention and is not obligated to accept them. However, the country generally provides temporary shelter to refugees in distress.
On Saturday, Malaysian authorities said they turned away two boats carrying nearly 300 Rohingya refugees attempting to enter the country illegally. The Maritime Enforcement Agency reported two more boats were trying to enter after 196 Rohingya landed Friday in the northeastern resort island of Langkawi, where they were detained.
Tarigan reported from Jakarta, Indonesia.
Ethnic Rohingya refugees including women and children who recently landed on two boats, sit on a beach during an inspection by local authorities in West Peureulak district, Aceh province, Indonesia, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Husna Mura)
Ethnic Rohingya refugees who recently landed on two boats write their names on a whiteboard during an inspection by local authorities in West Peureulak district, Aceh province, Indonesia, Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Husna Mura)
SAO PAULO (AP) — Indonesia has been admitted as a full member of the BRICS bloc of developing economies, the group's presiding country, Brazil, announced Monday.
Indonesia’s candidacy was endorsed by BRICS leaders in August 2023, according to the foreign ministry of Brazil, which holds the group’s presidency for 2025. However, the world's fourth most populous nation opted to formally join the bloc only after the formation of its newly elected government last year.
“The Brazilian government welcomes Indonesia’s entry into the BRICS,” the government said in a statement. “With the largest population and economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia shares with other members a commitment to reforming global governance institutions and contributes positively to deepening South-South cooperation.”
Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement Tuesday said that it reflects Indonesia’s increasingly active role in global issues, and its commitment to strengthening multilateral cooperation.
“Indonesia views its membership in BRICS as a strategic step to increase collaboration and cooperation with other developing countries, based on the principles of equality, mutual respect, and sustainable development,” said the statement.
BRICS was formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009, and South Africa was added in 2010. Last year, the alliance expanded to embrace Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia has been invited to join but has not yet done so.
China, the world’s second largest economy, “warmly welcomes and congratulates Indonesia” on joining the bloc, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said. He described Indonesia as a “major developing country and an important force in the Global South” that will “make a positive contribution to the development of the BRICS mechanism.”
Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have formally applied to become members and a few others have expressed interest.
The organization was created as a counterweight to the Group of Seven, comprised of developed nations. Its name derives from an economic term used in the early 2000s to describe rising countries expected to dominate the global economy by 2050.
Before Indonesia’s membership, the bloc accounted for nearly 45% of the world’s population and 35% of global gross domestic product, measured using purchasing power parity.
This version has corrected that Brazil holds the BRICS presidency in 2025 not 2024.
Associated Press writer Edna Tarigan in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.
FILE - Staff worker stands behinds national flags of Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa and India to tidy the flags ahead of a group photo during the BRICS Summit at the Xiamen International Conference and Exhibition Center in Xiamen, southeastern China's Fujian Province, Monday, Sept. 4, 2017. (Wu Hong/Pool Photo via AP, File)
