Amnesty International and another human rights group are seeking information about the status of 114 Myanmar nationals targeted for deportation from Malaysia.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court will hear the two NGOs' discovery application against the Malaysian government and two others on June 22.
Amnesty International and Asylum Access Malaysia's application is part of their larger legal challenge against the targetted deportation of over 1,200 Myanmar nationals to their strife-torn homeland.
However, on Feb 23, despite an interim court order, the Malaysian Immigration Department deported 1,086 Myanmar nationals via Myanmar navy vessels.
Since then, the two NGOs have been granted leave by the High Court to proceed with the main judicial review against the Malaysian government, the home minister, and the Immigration Department director-general.
The remaining 114 Myanmar citizens are still in Malaysia under an interim protection order against deportation, pending the judicial review's disposal.
When contacted by Malaysiakini today, the two NGOs' counsel, New Sin Yew, confirmed that the discovery application seeks to ascertain the United Nations Human Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) status of the Myanmar nationals.
The lawyer explained that they seek for the Malaysian government and two others to reveal crucial information, not just about the 114 Myanmar nationals left in the country but also of the 1,086 that have been deported.
"Yes," New said in regards to whether the discovery application has a strong and important bearing on the main judicial review against the deportation.
It is understood that some of the Myanmar nationals are asylum-seekers registered with UNHCR, and this is something the two rights groups are trying to ascertain.
New added that the court has yet to fix a date to hear the merits of the judicial review as it seeks to dispose of the discovery application first.
According to a copy of the discovery application, the two rights groups seek information and documents on the legal provision that is being relied on by the authorities for the deportation of the Myanmar nationals.
The two NGOs also seek information and documents on the UNHCR status of the Myanmar nationals.
When contacted, senior federal counsel (SFC) Ahmad Hanir Hambaly confirmed that the court had set June 22 to hear the discovery application.
The SFC is part of the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC), who act for the three respondents in the matter - the Immigration director-general, the Home Minister and the Malaysian government.
It was reported that Malaysia had agreed to deport 1,200 people to Myanmar amid a military coup and deadly protests in the country.
Previously, news portal Free Malaysia Today reported that three Myanmar-flagged vessels, including one described as a military operations ship, had arrived in Lumut, Perak and were anchored off the naval base there.
The UNHCR had urged Malaysia not to proceed with the deportation, while other groups warned that the deportation could legitimise the military junta now in power and expose Rohingya and other ethnic minorities to persecution.
The country had previously expressed "serious concern" over the coup in Myanmar.
Malaysia does not recognise the UN refugee status. Hence, refugees are viewed under the law as undocumented migrants.
Despite the non-recognition, Malaysia is home to an estimated 154,000 refugees from Myanmar, apart from the larger number of undocumented migrant workers. - Mkini
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