It was sadly predictable that Rohingya Muslims from Burma would account for most of the victims of Asia’s version of the Mediterranean migrant crisis. Thousands of fugitives are trapped on boats in the Bay of Bengal, having been abandoned by their traffickers. A new campaign by Thailand’s security forces against this trade appears to have had the side effect of causing people smugglers to leave their charges at sea.Most of the migrants trapped off the Thai coast are believed to be Rohingya Muslims who began their journeys in Burma, where they comprise less than 2 per cent of the population. Until the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, our image of Burma was dominated by the excesses of its military regime. We tend to assume that any refugees must be fleeing political repression.The