Baa Atoll’s Kamadhoo island on Friday revealed that they have collected a total of MVR 45,000, which will be donated to refugees of Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis.

Abdulla Rasheed, chair of the island’s council, said that this amount was collected through a donation box which was put there following a rally calling for justice on behalf of the Rohingya minority, who are being subject to a violent crackdown by Myanmar’s security forces.

Rasheed further said that the donation box is part of the islanders’, who number at a mere 600, support for Raajje Television’s fundraising telethon – which is to begin on Sunday.

“We have shown the entire country an example, we have been commended for acquiring such a large amount for such a small community” Rasheed said.

The persecution of the Rohingya minority group, which comprises of mostly Muslims and Hindus, have led refugees – branded so by Myanmar’s refusal to grant them domestic citizenship since 1982 – to flee to neighbouring countries.

International news sources report that hundreds of civilians who  tried to enter Bangladesh have been pushed back by security forces, with almost all of them being detained and forcibly returned to Myanmar.