Ten years ago, people smugglers abandoned more than 8,000 refugees and migrants to be stranded for weeks in the Andaman Sea. An estimated 370 people died. The Andaman Sea has long been a major route for those fleeing persecution and violence in Myanmar and Bangladesh, but because it lies between Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia, responses have often been ad hoc. Inconsistency and inadequacy defined both national and regional actions to the 2015 crisis. Without clear protocols or agreements, neighbouring countries pushed boats back or looked the other way. It became one of the deadliest episodes of forced migration that Southeast Asia has seen in recent memory. The incident was a confronting wake-up call. Governments quickly realised they were ill-equipped to respond effectively to future refugee crises. Indonesia and Thailand, in particular – two of the region’s key refugee-hosting countries – began reforming their policies, recognising the need for better systems to manage refugee flows while balancing national security and humanitarian obligations.
Australia’s role in preventing the next Andaman Sea refugee catastrophe | Lowy Institute
