Members of Burma's Rohingya Muslim minority recently found drifting in boats off the Indonesian island of Sumatra are causing a headache for nearby countries over whether to accept them.

After fleeing their homeland, the Rohingya reportedly were rounded up by the Thai military and treated harshly before being set adrift.

The Indonesian government would not grant them refugee status, arguing that they fled predominantly Buddhist Burmese for economic reasons.

But calls to protect the Rohingya have been mounting, both in Indonesia and other countries.

At a camp in the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Province, one of the Rohingya boat people said angrily, "I hate both Burma and Thailand."

According to this man and others, about 1,200 Rohingya migrants, including some from Bangladesh, fled Burma in December and were detained by the Thai military before being cast adrift.

"The Thai military treated us terribly," he said. "We were set adrift on a boat after being given only a small amount of rice and water."

The boat, carrying 220 people, drifted for about three weeks before being discovered by an Indonesian fishing boat on February 2. Twenty-two people died from thirst and hunger while the remaining 198 survived by drinking seawater.

Another group of 193 Rohingya boat people was detained in a different camp in the province. They also complained about violence at the hands of the Thai military. But the Thai government denied allegations of mistreatment, saying it had dealt with the Rohingya humanely, but would not allow them to stay in the country illegally.

The Rohingya are seeking permission to work and stay in Indonesia or Australia. But the Indonesian government is sticking to its position, arguing that the Rohingya did not cite political persecution as a reason for seeking refugee status.

Amnesty International, an international organisation to protect human rights, has asked the countries concerned not to send the Rohingya back to Burma, saying they are not recognised as citizens by the Burmese junta, but treated as "stateless persons" whose activities are restricted.

In a desperate effort to resolve the issue, Indonesian foreign minister Hassan Wirajuda on February 6 announced a policy to discuss the issue within a multinational framework.

The matter is likely to be taken up during a meeting with Thai foreign minister Kasit Piromya, who was due to visit Indonesia on Tuesday.