Sally Piri – The government will allow 400 Rohingya boat people in Aceh to stay in the province until a decision is made on where they will settle, presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal said on Monday.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced the temporary solution when he met with Burmese Prime Minister Gen. Thein Sein at Merdeka Palace on Monday.

Acehnese fishermen rescued 193 Rohingyas near Sabang Island in January. Last month, an additional 198 arrived in Idi Rayeuk, East Aceh. At least 20 refugees from the second group reportedly died at sea. "President Yudhoyono emphasized that the stay of the Rohingyas in Aceh will be extended, and they will receive humanitarian help until a solution is found," Dino said.

In order to sustain the supply of provisions, Yudhoyono added that the government would work closely with the Burmese government as well as the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees and the International Organization for Migration.

According to Dino, Thein Sein said that his government was concerned with the Rohingya issue and that it was willing to take in the refugees.

"However, they must prove that they indeed are from Burma," the presidential spokesman stressed after some of the Rohingyas in Banda Aceh were found to be Bangladesh residents.

The country hopes to use the Bali Process to discuss how to solve the Rohingya case but according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as of Friday, not one among the 40 countries invited to the forum have committed to take part in the resolving the crisis.

The government insisted that a solution was expected after the forum scheduled in mid-April. "Hopefully all parties concerned will come up with a consensus," Dino said, without speculating on a time table.

Both Burma and Thailand have come under fire from various nations, including Indonesia, over the way they supposedly treated the Muslim Rohingyas. The Thai military was alleged to have towed hundreds of Rohingyas out to sea in boats without engines and cast them adrift with scarce provisions, an allegation the Thai government vehemently denied.

Meanwhile, during the meeting with Yudhoyono, part of Thein Sein's state visit, Dino said that both leaders discussed other matters, ranging from legal, politics, social and economic issues. The two also touched on transnational security concerns.