Rohingya mark Aidilfitri in Indonesia after treacherous sea voyage – eNews Malaysia

MEULABOH (Indonesia), April 11 — At a broken non permanent shelter in western Indonesia, Rohingya males slick their hair with gel whereas girls apply make-up and vibrant hijabs to look the half for prayers at first of Eid-al-Fitr (Hari Raya Aidilfitri) festivities.

But the group of refugees are spending the top of Ramadan celebrations away from their households after surviving a harmful sea journey from squalid Bangladesh camps for an unsure future in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

At least 75 refugees are staying at an area official’s workplace in ultra-conservative Aceh province the place lots of the persecuted Myanmar minority land yearly.

Most of them survived their rickety boat capsizing final month and being stranded on its rusty hull for greater than a day.

Men, girls and kids unfolded mats by tent shelters for a sombre morning prayer at first of the Muslim vacation, with some moms drawing henna tattoos on the arms of their younger daughters.

As a preacher started to sing the notes of the morning prayer in entrance of makeshift tents, tears rolled down the faces of Rohingya males who stared on the ground with their arms crossed.

“Here, we’ve got no siblings. My household will not be right here, that’s why I cried,” stated Mohammad Rizwan, 35.

“Some additionally cried earlier as a result of their mom, father, or siblings died because of the boat capsizing. One pal of mine misplaced six or seven relations.”

The largely Muslim ethnic Rohingya are closely persecuted in Myanmar, and hundreds threat their lives every year on lengthy and costly sea journeys to attempt to attain Malaysia or Indonesia.

From mid-November to late January, greater than 1,700 Rohingya refugees landed on Indonesian shores, in accordance with the UN refugee company.

‘Want to go’

The Rohingya males are sleeping on mats on a crumbling ground strewn with trash contained in the shelter constructing, after being relocated from an outdated Red Cross facility on account of native anger.

But some are nonetheless making an attempt to make the most effective out of a nasty state of affairs.

“In our hometown, there’s a celebration for Eid. There have been moms, fathers, siblings, relations. Now, even right here, I nonetheless really feel happiness, regardless of the catastrophe at sea,” stated Dostgior, who goes by one identify. He added that he was grateful for the “feasting and chatting” with fellow survivors.

“If God willed it, I might need died at sea. But my destiny is sweet, so I’m alive.”

Others have been praying to hold on their journeys to a different nation, with Indonesia not giving them everlasting keep and Aceh locals holding protests in opposition to their presence in current months.

“The individuals of Indonesia have helped us so much with meals and garments. They present their humanity to us,” stated Zlabul Hoque, 33.

“Eid is knocking (on) the door. I don’t know the place they take us after Eid. We need to go to Malaysia.”

‘We are silent’

Aid companies have appealed to Jakarta to simply accept extra, however Indonesia will not be a signatory of the UN Refugee Convention and says it’s not compelled to take in refugees from Myanmar.

As the prayers ended, the boys stood up from their mats, wiped their faces. The mic’d-up preacher additionally started to cry.

The males hugged one another, wailing out loud with grief as they remembered the relations misplaced on the treacherous ocean journey.

After praying behind the boys, the ladies returned to their tent, holding each other and weeping in unison. One cried so hysterically that she needed to be helped again to one of many shelter tents.

“We don’t perceive any language right here. We don’t know something but. So we’re silent, we are able to’t even go anyplace,” stated 17-year-old Dilkayas.

“What else will we do throughout Eid? We don’t have a house right here.” — eNM