Secretary-General of ASEAN H.E.Le Luong Minh, Chair of ASEAN Govt of M'sia: We continue to appeal for the boat refugees

We, Good Shepherd Sisters and mission partners of the Asia Pacific Justice Peace Network, congratulate the Malaysian and Indonesian governments for allowing thousands of Rohingya and Bangladeshi refugees to land on their shores. We applaud the humanitarian response agreed to by the Malaysian, Indonesian and Thai governments.

We urge the governments of Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand: ·

• To continue diligently search and rescue efforts to bring the stranded to shore ·
• To step-up efforts to provide them with humanitarian assistance like shelter, medical care, food and water
• To respect life, show compassion and offer protection for the vulnerable against human traffickers and smugglers ·
• To collaborate with other ASEAN member countries to accord internally displaced persons, such as the Rohingyas, the right to life, dignity and livelihood

We urge the governments to seek a durable solution to this crisis immediately!