KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, May 20 (UPI) -- Indonesia and Malaysia will stop turning back boats and have agreed to offer temporary shelter to 7,000 immigrants stranded in the Andaman Sea.
"The towing and the shooing [away of boats] is not going to happen," Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said at a joint press conference with Indonesia's Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi on Wednesday. "Indonesia and Malaysia agreed to continue to provide humanitarian assistance to those 7,000 irregular migrants still at sea."
The leaders cited a deteriorating humanitarian crisis as the reason for the decision. About 3,000 immigrants from Bangladesh and Rohingya people have reached destinations, but many were rejected and their boats were towed away.
Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia held talks in Kuala Lumpur about the immigrant situation.
"We also agreed to offer them temporary shelter provided that the resettlement and repatriation process will be done in one year by the international community," Anifah added.
Shelter will only be available for those people currently on the seas. Thailand will not be providing shelter but will continue offering humanitarian assistance.
About 400 immigrants were rescued on Wednesday who were adrift at sea after the boat's engine broke down. They were discovered last Thursday and rescued by Indonesian fishermen.
People aboard told BBC News they were abandoned by their smugglers, that they were running out of food and water and that 10 people aboard already died.
