Malaysia begins sending home Myanmar refugees despite safety concerns
The first returns are part of a broader plan that could send back up to 5,000 people as rights groups warn of safety risks.
- On Tuesday, September 29, Malaysia sent back its first batch of 1,476 Myanmar nationals under a phased repatriation program, despite intense pressure from the United Nations and rights organizations to halt the returns.
- Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim confirmed in September that Myanmar agreed to accept its nationals following bilateral negotiations. The plan followed authorities detaining more than 100 Rohingya refugees outside the United Nations Refugee Agency office in Kuala Lumpur.
- Myanmar pledged "safe and dignified" returns earlier this month, but the UNHCR maintains that conditions remain far too volatile for safe repatriation. Human rights advocates warned that returning refugees to active conflict zones risks violating the principle of non-refoulement.
- James Bawi, a Chin community leader, warned that deportation could mean arrest, detention, forced conscription or facing serious danger. Refugees remaining in Malaysia navigate daily life without legal status, balancing survival needs against constant risk of detention.
- The deportations represent the first wave of a broader agreement that could see up to 5,000 Myanmar nationals returned. As Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, hundreds of thousands of refugees continue living in legal limbo.
152 Articles
152 Articles
Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals repatriated from Malaysia as UN warns of risks
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals who were sent back from Malaysia arrived in the country’s largest city on Sunday, despite warnings from the United Nations refugee agency and rights groups that conditions for return remain unsafe.
Le Figaro
MARINE & OCÉANSHuman rights associations point out that the poor conditions of detention of the Burmese people concerned have led them to accept this dismissal programme.
Malaysia deports 1476 refugees to Myanmar
Refugee and human rights groups are outraged that Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's government has an agreement with the military coup regime in Myanmar to deport 5000 refugees, including Rohingya, back to face the regime's genocidal attacks. Peter Boyle spoke to an activist with Gerakan Gabungan Anti-Imperialis (Gegar), which co-organised a September 24 protest against the deportation deal.
Malaysia has begun the repatriation of Burmese nationals, and the first batch has already been returned. The United Nations and human rights groups urged Malaysia to stop, citing the unsafe situation in Myanmar, saying it might violate the “principle of non-refoulement.” The Malaysian government insists that repatriation is due to voluntary application and is aimed at solving the domestic refugee problem.
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