Muda leader calls for Malaysia to recognise refugee status

 

Muda executive committee member Nurainie Haziqah Shafii has called on the government to recognise the status of refugees and to accord them their human rights in Malaysia.

Without doing so, she said, refugees are deemed undocumented migrants under the Immigration Act, and risk deportation to the countries from which they fled.

"From a legal perspective, Malaysia never ratified and is not a party to the 1950 Refugees Convention or the 1967 Protocol, and therefore does not have a legal or administrative framework to govern the status or rights of refugees here.

"However, this does not mean Malaysia does not have the obligation to protect refugees, who are under threat.

"On World Refugee Day, I urge the government to recognise the status of refugees in this country and to ensure and protect their fundamental rights," Nurainie, a practicing lawyer, said on Twitter.

She added that Malaysia is known internationally for its magnanimity and caring position when it comes to world conflicts, and should take a similar position at home.

Muda executive committee member Nurainie Haziqah Shafii

Up to last month, 182,960 refugees and asylum seekers are registered by the UN refugee agency UNHCR in Malaysia.

These include 46,570 children, some of whom travel on their own.

Some 157,040 are from Myanmar, comprising 104,330 Rohingyas, 23,030 Chins, and 29,680 other ethnic groups from conflict-affected areas or fleeing persecution in Myanmar.

The remaining are from 50 other countries including Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, Somalia, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Iraq and Palestine, with many of them fleeing war and persecution, the UNHCR said.

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READ MORE: Lone Passage: How refugee children travel to Malaysia on their own

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Without legal status in Malaysia, refugees do not have the right to work or education and are vulnerable to exploitation.

Even though Malaysia does not recognise refugees, it is still a popular transit destination for refugees waiting for placement in a third country.

However, the UNHCR said less than five percent of the world's refugees will receive a place in a third country each year.

From 2008 to June 2020, more than 88,500 refugees, including Rohingyas, have been resettled from Malaysia to third countries. - Mkini