Messages from Exiles traces a fragile thread of connec-tion that persists in the lives of Rohingya refugees arriving by sea to Aceh, Indonesia. Since late 2023, over 1,500 have landed along this northern coast, carrying little but hope and mobile phones. In their hands, the device becomes more than a tool; it is a bridge to lost homes, fractured families, and futures yet imagined. Across these quiet camps and temporary shelters, faint signals from Bangla-desh or Malaysia pulse through the air, keeping distant voices close.
Yet the promise of refuge is unsteady. As local tensions rise and misinformation circulates, make-shift shelters are torn down, and safe spaces collapse under pressure. Some who once fled by sea now flee again, this time from the places meant to protect them.
What remains are moments of resilience. A teenag-er charging a phone from a shared generator. Children learning through voice notes from teach-ers hundreds of kilometers away. Families gather-ing around glowing screens that deliver both com-fort and longing.
In these intimate gestures, Messages from Exiles reflects on the urgency of being seen and heard in a world quick to forget. Connection, in this context, is not just technological. It is emotional, political, and deeply human.
“Messages from Exiles” is a collaborative project by Reza Saifullah (he/him) and Riska Munawarah (she/her). We have been collaborating since 2023, using photography and visual storytelling to explore social and identity issues, with a particular emphasis on the human dimensions of each narrative.
This story has been published in New Naratif and has been exhibited at the Jakarta International Photo Festival (JIPFest) 2025.
