Sri Lankan refugees held in camps in Vietnam include women and children
As the Sri Lankan people are heavily affected by the economic crisis, two of the 303 Sri Lankan refugees detained in Vietnam have tried to commit suicide while trying to go to Canada as refugees.
In the background of the refugees saying that they cannot go back to Sri Lanka, the authorities are trying to deport them back to Sri Lanka and their fellow refugees said that they attempted suicide on the night of November 18.
A Sri Lankan refugee in Vietnam told BBC Tamil that one of the two is in critical condition. He also says that the health of another has returned to normal.
Who are these refugees? How was it rescued in the middle of the sea?
image source, Getty Images
Depicting image
303 Sri Lankans who have recently tried to cross illegally to Canada are among the worst affected by the economic crisis.
BBC Tamil reports from Myanmar that most of them are Tamils and there are Sinhalese in numbers that can be counted on the fingers. However, BBC Tamil could not independently confirm this information.
These Sri Lankan refugees have traveled to Myanmar by air at different times over the past few months, having previously gone through proper visa procedures from Sri Lanka.
Thus, the Sri Lankan refugees who went to Myanmar, where they were kept in different places by people smugglers for a few months, started their journey to Canada last October through a ship.
It is reported that a hole has occurred in the said ship, which traveled for about 28 days amid various challenges including rough seas.
Subsequently, the refugees traveling on the said ship informed the rescue center of the Sri Lankan Navy on November 6.
In this situation, the Sri Lankan Navy informed the naval rescue centers of Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines.
While the Singaporean authorities first took action to locate the ship with the refugees, they notified the Japanese cargo ship that was sailing near the ship.
Subsequently, the refugees were rescued on November 7 by a Japanese cargo ship. They were handed over to Vietnam by Japanese cargo ship sailors.
‘I don’t want to go back to Sri Lanka’
Some of them told BBC Tamil that the refugees handed over to Vietnam were divided into three groups and detained in three camps.
The refugees have told the authorities that they do not want to return to Sri Lanka under any circumstances.
They have said that if they try to send them to Sri Lanka, they will commit suicide.
In this situation, a Sri Lankan refugee detained in Vietnam told BBC Tamil that while efforts were being made to send the said refugees back to their home country, two attempted suicide.
Sri Lanka moves to bring back refugees
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka has announced that steps will be taken to bring the Sri Lankan refugees detained in Vietnam to the country soon. Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Sabri has also said that discussions have started with the Vietnamese government regarding this issue.
Will they be arrested if brought to Sri Lanka?
When these refugees are brought to the country, steps will be taken according to the coordination between the Ministry of External Affairs and international agencies.
Police Media Spokesperson, Senior Police Inspector Advocate Nihal Talduva told BBC Tamil that actions will be taken based on policy-based coordination between governments and international agencies.
Nihal Talduwa, Police Media Spokesperson
The BBC also asked the Tamil Police media spokesperson about the fear among the relatives that they might be arrested on the basis of being LTTE. He said that legal action will be taken if there are people who maintain relations with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam among these refugees, and if there are no such people, no action will be taken.
Similarly, Nihal Talduwa said that legal action will be taken against those involved in human trafficking.
BBC Tamil on Social Media: