Abdullah closes his eyes as he recalls the terrifying journey he made after escaping from Rakhine State, in Myanmar. “When I saw people dying day by day, I prayed to Allah to save my life to reach Thailand safely,” he murmurs. Although Abdullah survived the journey, upon arrival he was taken to a smugglers’ camp, beaten and forced to work. He escaped, but still bears the scars today. “If I think of this situation, it’s like I came to this place to sacrifice my life. I feel very sad.”

In Southeast Asia, it is estimated that 54,000 people have undertaken irregular maritime journeys so far in 2014, fleeing Bangladesh or Myanmar for Thailand, Malaysia or Indonesia.

Understand more: http://tracks.unhcr.org/2014/12/dange...

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