BANGKOK, Thailand — Southeast Asia is bracing for a new “sailing season.” It’s a benign-sounding expression for one of the region’s most perilous annual events.
Starting late in the year, when monsoons recede and seas grow calmer, tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar make a grim decision. They choose to sail eastward on creaky boats run by callous smuggling syndicates. Their goal: securing underground work in Thailand or Malaysia, even though both nations warn them to stay away.
Many die at sea. Those who do not are often swept into mafia-run human trafficking rings infamous for rape, extortion and burying those who can’t pay ransoms in jungle graves.
But the risk is deemed worth it among many Rohingya who, in recent years, have decided the danger is preferable to remaining in their homeland. (Courtesy of usatoday.com)
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