We Malaysians are a nice bunch of people, right?

 

The Rohingya presence in Malaysia is back in the media limelight, and, as usual, there is a general feeling of disdain among the locals toward this group of displaced people.

The reasons for this feeling are still the same. They are usually accused of crime, stealing jobs from the locals, and just general misconduct.

This resurrection of sentiments happens every year. It’s like a trend and I can even observe that from my writings.

I did a search on Malaysiakini for my own writings about the Rohingya, and the results show I have written about it almost every year since 2017.

I wrote about it twice in 2017, once in 2018 - once in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025.

I’m sure that I have written about it many times before 2017, too, in other media outlets that I have worked for.

In 2018, I even made a documentary film about it when I travelled to the Kutupalong refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.

Well, it looks like I’m going to be writing about it again because, although it is a recurring issue, I still feel very passionate about it.

Besides, we must continue to put in effort to raise awareness about how this issue needs to be handled, especially from a humanitarian perspective.

Lack of recognition for refugees

As we all must know, our country is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention. What that means is that our government does not recognise refugees, and that any foreign individual who enters the country without the proper documentation or who overstays their visa will be considered an illegal immigrant.

That in itself is already problematic, and I strongly feel that the country needs to reconsider signing the convention.

I don’t expect all Malaysians and the government to immediately want to sign it, but I do believe that proper discussion and discourse need to happen.

I am definitely writing this as patiently and calmly as I can because, as I have mentioned earlier, I have written about this so many times over the years (almost two decades!).

I should be frustrated, disappointed, pessimistic, and cynical. Honestly, I am, but I feel I need to persevere and continue.

Let me be frank. I have covered conflict and war for many years. I have been to countries that have been ravaged by violence and political instability.

I have seen how innocent people in these places suffer under terrible conditions, and I understand their desperation to leave for survival. I would be like that too in their situation.

I have spoken to so many of these people, and not a single one has ever said to me that they left their home countries willingly.

They were all forced to because if they didn’t, they would suffer or even die. If given a choice, they would all want to go home or not leave at all.

The Syrian example

For example, we can look at the Syrian exodus in the past years. As soon as the fighting stopped, thousands of Syrians who had left the country started going back.

This has been the case with Iraq and even Afghanistan to a certain degree. Everyone definitely wants to return home.

I would also like to see what the data is to prove that the Rohingya are all criminals. I wonder what kind of crimes they are actually partaking in Malaysia.

My assumption is that if there are any crimes that they do would be petty theft, and at the most, small-time robbery.

And if this is the case, then we need to really understand the root cause of it. As refugees, they have no way to obtain legal and proper jobs to earn and feed their families.

So what else can they do? How do you blame a jobless mother who steals a loaf of bread to feed her four hungry children?

I am sure if given the opportunity to work legally, they would. So many are already hustling working jobs that are more “flexible” for them, such as doing hard labour like gardening, cleaning work, and other manual labour.

So, it is wrong to say that they don’t want to work at all.

Then, the accusation of them stealing our jobs, which I think is pretty ridiculous. The brutal truth shows that most Rohingya aren’t rocket scientists.

Decades of oppression have robbed them of opportunities for education and a professional future. The only competition for jobs would be the ones most Malaysians would rather not do anyway.

What’s the harm in allowing them to work anyway? They would be earning an income and spending that income too.

Common sense would say that is something good for our local economy. It’s a positive injection of money into the economy, and they pay taxes. It would be a win-win situation.

Allowing refugees to work

In February last year, I had written that Dr Zaliha Mustafa, who was the then-federal territories minister, announced that the government was considering allowing refugees who were registered with the government and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to work.

She also said, at the time, that the government was focusing on implementing the National Security Council Directive No 23: Policy and Mechanism for Managing Refugees and Asylum Seekers (2023 revision), and this was their framework of how they wanted to manage these groups of people.

Dr Zaliha Mustafa

I wonder what has happened to this initiative? What is the actual progress, or if anything is happening at all with it?

I think it is a positive step towards eventually recognising refugees. It would be great if the government could update us on this, especially when public sentiments about the Rohingya are turning so negative.

It would show that the government is sensitive to the issue, and also empathetic and sympathetic towards the plight of people who need assistance, like the Rohingya.

And that is the main problem here - Malaysians need to be more empathetic and sympathetic. We desperately need to create a sensitive Malaysian society.

So, I will continue writing about this issue yearly if I need to.

I know there are many who agree with me, but sadly, I think that there are many more who aren’t, or even worse, are apathetic about it all.

Come on, Malaysians. We are a nice bunch of people, right? - Mkini

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ZAN AZLEE is a writer, documentary filmmaker, journalist and academic. Visit fatbidin.com to view his work.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.