World News
Fishermen not allowed to rescue drowning migrants─── 13:50 Mon, 18 May 2015
Jakarta - Fishermen in Indonesia's Aceh province say they have been told by officials not to rescue migrants from boats off the coast, even if they are drowning.
At least 700 Bangladeshis and Rohingyas from Myanmar were rescued off Aceh last week by locals, bringing the numbers in camps there to at least 1,500.
An army official said it would be illegal for any more of the migrants to come to shore.
All countries in the region have closed their borders to the migrants.
Thousands of people - mostly Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution and poverty in Myanmar, but also Bangladeshis looking for work - are thought to be stranded out at sea.
BBC