VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Volunteers of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) in Lhokseumawe, Aceh, distribute basic  necessities, such as food and clothes for prayers, to Rohingya refugees. ANTARA/HO-The Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) Public Relations

Twenty-five Rohingya children, aged between 5 and 17 years, who are currently being sheltered in Aceh arrived without their parents, according to Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi.

"There are 25 children, aged 5-17 years, (who have) arrived without accompanying families in this group," she told the press at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Thursday.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is currently collecting data on the 99 Rohingya refugees who were saved by Acehnese fishermen in June this year, she said.

“The UNHCR has started the registration process since July 5, 2020, and it is expected to be completed by July 12. Up till today, UNHCR Indonesia has collected data on 65 out of the 99 migrants," she remarked.

This weekend, the refugees will be transferred to the Meunasah Mee Training Center in Lhokseumawe. They are currently being accommodated in an abandoned local immigration office building in Lhokseumaweh, North Aceh.

Two refugees, who were sick and given medical treatment upon their arrival in Aceh, have recovered and joined the rest.

The Indonesian government is providing medical facilities, including in Cut Meutia Hospital, for those requiring treatment.

On June 22, 2020, three Acehnese fishermen had rescued the 99 Rohingya refugees after their boat started sinking in the Malacca Strait waters. The refugees were headed to Malaysia.

The fishermen towed the refugees — 48 women, 34 children, and 17 men — to the North Aceh shore and offered them food and drinking water.

At present, the North Aceh government, the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), and several humanitarian NGOs such as ACT, are looking after the refugees. (ANTARA)