Jakarta. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Friday alleged that the influx of Rohingya refugees in Aceh province in recent months involved the work of a people smuggling syndicate.

Speaking in a video message, the president vowed to take stern measures to stop the smuggling of refugees into the country’s westernmost province.

"I received reports about the growing number of Rohingya refugees entering Indonesian territories, especially Aceh,” Jokowi said.

“There is a strong indication that the wave of refugees involved a people-smuggling syndicate and the Indonesian government is determined to take stern measures against the perpetrators,” he added.

Despite the planned actions to stop the arrival of refugees, the government will continue to provide humanitarian aid for those stranded on Aceh coasts and coordinate with relevant international organizations to address this issue, Jokowi said.

Indonesia is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, so it does not have the obligation to accommodate refugees.

Earlier in the day, the Aceh police said a Bangladeshi national had been arrested on charges of smuggling 149 Rohingya refugees into the coasts of Aceh in exchange for monetary gains.

Hussain Bakhtiar bin Saber Ahmad, 70, stands accused of receiving approximately Rp 3.3 billion ($213,000) from the refugees, facilitating their entry into Aceh.

He is the captain of a wooden boat that arrived on the Laweung coast in Pidie regency carrying refugees on November 14, after traversing the territorial waters of Bangladesh and Myanmar for seven days.

More than 1,000 Rohingya Muslims have landed in Aceh since last month. Most of them came from refugee camps in Bangladesh where they took shelter following a crackdown by the military junta in Myanmar in 2017.

Many villagers on Aceh coasts have rejected their arrival and prevented them from entering villages.

The influx of Rohingya refugees has ignited social tensions among locals already grappling with economic challenges.

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