Government Will Not Allow Refugee Issue to Drag On, to Resolve It in Accordance with Law

KUALA LUMPUR: The government will not allow the longstanding issue of foreign refugees in the country to continue unresolved and has begun addressing it firmly, systematically and in phases, in accordance with the supremacy of the Constitution and the rule of law, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

He said arrangements had been finalised for 5,000 Myanmar refugees to undergo a voluntary and phased repatriation programme to their country of origin, based on the Myanmar Government’s agreement to receive them and the individuals’ consent to return voluntarily.

“Today (yesterday), 1,476 individuals began the first phase of repatriation, based on a list submitted by the Myanmar Government through an official diplomatic note.

“The implementation is being coordinated by the Home Ministry (KDN), together with the Immigration Department of Malaysia and relevant agencies. This solution was also reached through diplomatic engagement and direct negotiations with the Myanmar Government,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Saifuddin Nasution said the presence of foreign refugees, particularly those from Myanmar, had persisted for decades without a comprehensive solution, resulting in a significant financial burden on the country, serious social challenges and security concerns.

For an issue involving two countries, enforcement measures alone were insufficient, he said, adding that cooperation from the country of origin was necessary to ensure that the processes of receiving, documenting and repatriating individuals could be carried out systematically and in phases.

“This is the approach we are taking — upholding the law, carrying out enforcement and utilising diplomatic channels to achieve a solution.

“Although Malaysia is not a State Party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, we have chosen an approach that is firm yet humane, guided by the value of Ihsan and the spirit of the ASEAN family, with every action carried out systematically and responsibly without compromising national security and sovereignty,” he said.

Repatriation of Myanmar Nationals Begins

Saifuddin Nasution said yesterday’s first phase marked the beginning of the programme, with subsequent phases to proceed once the identification, documentation, verification and operational readiness processes were completed.

“We have begun resolving this longstanding legacy issue in accordance with the law. We will safeguard the country’s sovereignty. The security, welfare and interests of Malaysians remain our priority,” he said.

A total of 1,476 Myanmar refugee detainees, comprising 1,370 men, 79 women and 27 children, were repatriated in the first phase from the Royal Malaysian Navy base in Lumut, Perak, yesterday.

The repatriation was carried out using Myanmar Navy vessels — UMS Moattama, escort vessel UMS King Sin Phyu Shin and hospital ship UMS Thanlwin.

Myanmar’s Cooperation Facilitates Repatriation of Detainees

Meanwhile, Home Ministry Deputy Secretary-General (Policy and Control) Datuk Makhzan Mahyuddin said cooperation from the Myanmar Government, particularly in identifying and verifying its nationals, was among the factors that facilitated the first phase of the repatriation programme from Malaysia yesterday.

He said the verification process was crucial to ensure that the individuals could be repatriated through a mechanism agreed upon by both countries.

“We have seen full cooperation from the Myanmar Embassy because the most important process is identifying and verifying the individuals by the Myanmar Government… that has been very good and relatively quick,” he said.

Makhzan said the cooperation was part of negotiations between the two governments, which also involved coordination at the Foreign Ministry level.

He said the Myanmar Government had also cooperated in coordinating the implementation date after the programme was initially proposed for August, but had to be adjusted to meet the logistical requirements of both sides.

According to Makhzan, the cooperation also involved the Myanmar Navy to ensure the repatriation mechanism could be implemented.

“Malaysia and Myanmar remain committed to the phased repatriation of 5,000 Myanmar nationals, while the timing of subsequent phases will depend on the progress of documentation and the identification of individuals.

“There are three main matters we need to clarify in this repatriation process. The first is identifying individuals who are mutually agreed to be eligible, and the second is the documentation process with the Myanmar Government… that is the most important matter at present before documents can be issued for their departure,” he said.

Makhzan said documentation was among the key matters that needed to be resolved before the next repatriation could take place, particularly for individuals without identification documents.

He said once the documents were issued, KDN would inform Wisma Putra to proceed with negotiations with the Myanmar Government regarding the next repatriation.

“If this process can be completed quickly, we will be able to carry out the repatriation promptly. However, if the process takes some time, the second phase of repatriation will be slightly delayed,” he said.

Makhzan said that as of Aug 15, there were 10,388 Myanmar nationals in immigration detention depots, but stressed that this did not mean all of them were refugees, as the status of each individual still needed to be determined.

Bernama