ROHINGYA CHILDREN IN INDONESIA Amina* is 11 years old, and together with her mother, two sisters, and brother, left the refugee camps in Bangladesh to try and reach Malaysia, where her father has been working since she was born. They arrived in Aceh, Indonesia, in September 2020 after several months at sea. I was so tired when I arrived, I could hardly think. We were at sea for months. The boat was so small. There was barely any food and when I wanted to drink there was not enough water. My body itched because I couldn’t take a shower. I want to go to Malaysia to meet my father. I haven’t seen him since I was born, 11 years ago. I miss him and I only can communicate with him via video calls. Initially I thought I had arrived in Malaysia… when I found out that I arrived in Aceh it broke my heart because I could not meet him. I want to be with him… I want to have a complete family like everyone else. 11-year old Karima* arrived in Aceh in June 2020 with her mother, older sister, and grandfather. Originally, the family had been trying to get to Malaysia to live with Karima’s father. mom told me we were going to meet my father in Malaysia. At first, I didn’t know we had arrived in Aceh. We left my grandmother and some other family members in Bangladesh. Sometimes I miss my grandmother so bad… The people here treated us kindly, like we were their family. Now, we live in the refugee camp. I am happy here because I have many friends. I go to school at the camp with other children and learn the Qur’an, Bahasa and English. At first it was difficult because I didn’t understand the language and didn’t know how to communicate when I needed something. After school I go home to have lunch then afterwards I play. I like to play jump rope and hit and run. I also like riding the bicycle. I have a local friend here and his name is Navis. We often play together. 3 COUNTRY BY COUNTRY SNAPSHOT 3.5 INDONESIA When I grow up I have three goals: first, I want to be a religion and English teacher so I can teach many of my friends. Second, I want to be a tailor so that many people can wear nice clothes. Third, I want to become a policewoman to protect good people from bad people. And I especially want my family and I to have the freedom to be able to determine our future independently even though I don’t have citizenship. We arrived in Aceh by boat, hungry and thirsty. I didn’t know how long I had been at the sea, I only remembered that our condition was very sad. My Indonesia has been home to a small number of Rohingya refugees since the 1970s. However, it was not until 2015 that the country began receiving large-scale arrivals. In May 2015, two boats carrying nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees and 800 Bangladeshi migrants landed on the coast of Aceh, in the west of the country.152 Indonesian authorities had initially refused to allow the boats to land, and like their counterparts in Thailand and Malaysia, the navy had provided the group with food and water before pushing the boats back to sea. However, when regional governments continued to prevent the boats from landing, and the situation of those on board became increasingly more desperate, Acehnese fishermen intervened, rescuing the boats and bringing the passengers to shore. After the initial crisis abated, the number of new arrivals slowed considerably although boats have periodically continued to land off the Acehnese coast. As well as those living in shelters in Aceh – whose numbers fluctuate as new arrivals move on to Malaysia – several hundred other Rohingya are believed to be among the more than 13,000 officially registered refugees living in shelters across the country.153 25