PROTECTION FOR ROHINGYAS

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 000346 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, PRM (H.TRAN),DRL NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PREF ID BM SUBJECT: PROTECTION FOR ROHINGYAS REF: A. STATE 17836 ¶B. JAKARTA 252 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Mission has thanked the GOI for its efforts to provide protection to the Rohingya boat people who have been rescued in Indonesian waters. GOI officials reiterated their commitment to addressing the Rohingya's humanitarian needs and working with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to ensure protection of those with legitimate refugee claims. Indonesia plans to press for a regional approach to this issue at the ASEAN Summit in Thailand, February 27-March ¶1. END SUMMARY. EXPRESSING USG CONCERN ¶2. (C) Poloff thanked the GOI for its efforts to provide protection to the Rohingya boat people in a conversation with Ade Sukendar, Deputy Director for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DEPLU),on February 27. Poloff reiterated this message to Cicilia Rusdiharini, DEPLU's Deputy Director for American Affairs. (Note: Indonesian authorities rescued nearly 400 Rohingyas of the coast of Aceh, north Sumatra, in January and February. The Rohingyas remain in Aceh.) ¶3. (C) Per Ref A instructions, poloff underscored that the international community must protect the Rohingya, a stateless population subject to persecution in Burma. States with Rohingya boat people should continue to work with the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to ensure that any Rohingyas with legitimate refugee claims receive appropriate protections. Poloff praised Indonesia's cooperation with the UNHCR and IOM and the GOI's attention to the Rohingya's humanitarian needs (Ref B). Poloff urged Indonesia to work with its neighbors to develop a regional approach to this issue. GOI ON THE SAME PAGE ¶4. (C) Sukendar reiterated Indonesia's commitment to protect the Rohingyas in Aceh. The GOI would continue to work with the UNHCR and IOM to screen the Rohingyas for refugee status. Indonesian government agencies and non-governmental organizations would continue to address the Rohingyas' humanitarian needs. A REGIONAL APPROACH ¶5. (C) Sukendar said Indonesia supported a regional approach. FM Wirajuda planned to discuss the issue with his Thai, Malaysian and other regional counterparts on the margins of the ASEAN Summit. (Note: President Yudhoyono is also slated to meet the Burmese Prime Minister on The top Indonesian diplomat would urge regional states to address the issue through the Bali Process. (Note: Indonesia and Australia co-chair the Bali Process, an initiative that addresses migration and combats trafficking in persons and people smuggling in the Asia-Pacific region. See Ref B.) HUME