It is almost a year to the climax of last year’s Rohingya refugee crisis, the aftermath of a crackdown by Thai authorities on land-smuggling routes that led to the surge of boats packed with Rohingya and Bangladeshi refugees and economic migrants crossing the Andaman Sea. Many, if not all, were sailing for Malaysia.
Readers will remember the gripping headlines and even more gripping photos and videos of desperate, emaciated individuals on rickety boats, in some cases abandoned by their smugglers, begging for food, water and shelter.
Policymakers feared being “swarmed” and Thai, Indonesian and Malaysian navies were involved in “human ping-pong pushbacks” of refugee boats.
Individuals, non-governmental organisations and fishermen took it upon themselves to seek out boats and provide help.
There was also criticism by international organisations of the initial reluctance of the three countries to accept refugees.
Overall, it made for a tragic yet riveting media circus. (Courtesy of nst.com.my)
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