Two asylum-seeking Rohingya Muslims from Burma, including a 2-year-old toddler, drowned after their boat sunk en route to Australia’s Christmas Island, AFP reports. The two Rohingya died along with a Bangladeshi, while 29 others on board were rescued by Indonesian police. The boat sunk on Monday amid rough seas, said police from a province on Indonesia’s Java island. Christmas Island is a common destination for asylum seekers from countries including Burma, Afghanistan and Iran. A hard-line immigration policy implemented by Australia this year has seen a decrease in asylum seeker arrivals, but AFP reported that nearly 200 people arrived in four boats in the week leading up to Dec. 6.
Your Thoughts …
