MMC Asia 4Mi Snapshot – Journeys to Indonesia for Rohingya refugees: Routes, risks, assistance and needs (June 2022)

This snapshot traces the journeys of Rohingya refugees traveling to Indonesia. It also presents the needs and risks reported by Rohingya while in Indonesia, as well as their intentions for onward movements. Following two previous snapshots highlighting journeys and risks in transit for Rohingya traveling to Malaysia, this snapshot contributes to building a solid evidence base to inform targeted responses that improve protection for Rohingya refugees and shape advocacy efforts related to movements and protection of Rohingya refugees in Asia.

Key findings

• 62% of respondents started their journey in Myanmar; 34% set off from Bangladesh; 4% traveled from Malaysia. For those leaving Myanmar, Bangladesh was a frequent transit country.

• 69% of respondents reported at least one dangerous location along the journey.
Most of them reported the risk of physical violence (67 out of 75 respondents).

• Most respondents who reported protection risks considered border guards/ immigration officials as the main perpetrator (52 out of 75 respondents), followed by military/police (39 respondents) and criminal gangs (33 respondents).

• 89% of respondents perceived that there are fewer resettlement options since COVID-19. Nearly half reported being stuck in Indonesia because of the pandemic.

• 96% of respondents were in need of assistance in Indonesia at the time of the survey. Of those, most said they needed assistance with resettlement, access to work, and cash.

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