The intensifying conflict in Aceh has led to a surge in the number of asylum applications at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Kuala Lumpur.

UNHCR protection officer Shinji Kubo said today the agency has been receiving between150 to 200 asylum applications daily from people claiming to have fled the war in the northern Sumatran province.

"We are trying to work out an internal mechanism to help us determine who are the civilian asylum seekers. We have to be very clear because our mandate allows us only to protect civilians and not combatants," he said.

The new figure represents a doubling of cases over the past month and a half when Indonesian forces launched its all-out war to wipe out separatists from the Free Aceh Movement (Gam).

To date, the government has maintained that there has not been an influx of refugees fleeing the war in Aceh to Malaysia, as initially expected .

This has been attributed to the higher incidence of Indonesian and Malaysian navy patrols along the Straits of Malacca.

Last month, the UNHCR said applications from individuals claiming to have fled state persecution in both Aceh and Burma had already rose to record numbers because of strict new immigration laws which allow for whipping and jailing of undocumented immigrants.

Detained refugees

Kubo said the UNHCR has also been receiving various reports from asylum seeker communities of persons who have been arrested or detained by the authorities for not having valid immigration visas.

"Some of these people are asylum seekers and some of them are recognised refugees. From our records, we noted that about 100 asylum seekers are missing. Another 50 recognised refugees are confirmed as detained," he said.

However, Kubo said a large proportion of the refugees received their recognised status only after their arrest.

"Except for about four or five persons, the rest of them were recognised as refugees only after they entered detention. We don't really have a big problem of the authorities arresting recognised refugees. Most of them were arrested pending approval," he added.

The protection officer said there is an "understanding" between the UNHCR and the immigration department not to deport these persons to their countries of origin, and instead allow for the refugee agency to arrange resettlement for them in another country.

"The majority of them are scheduled for resettlement. We are trying to work out a solution for families with children first," he said.

Asylum seekers are persons who have submitted their applications for political asylum to the UNHCR. Refugees are those who have been recognised and accepted by the agency as having "well-founded" fear of persecution if they are returned to their country of origin.

As the Malaysian government is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, it is not bound to accept temporary settlement of recognised refugees in the country. However, the government has tolerated their residence in Malaysia pending resettlement arrangements.

Rohingyas identified

Meanwhile, Kubo said seven Burmese Rohingyas who were arrested early Monday morning for attempting to climb into the United States embassy in Kuala Lumpur have been identified by the agency.

"Some of them have already been rejected by the UNHCR. Some are awaiting (the decision) to their asylum applications and some awaiting an appointment for an interview," he said.

Kubo said the UNHCR is requesting the police not to deport these persons until their application status has been finalised.

When contacted, a spokesperson from the Cheras police headquarters said the seven men are still being held at the lock-up pending a decision by the investigating officer for the case.

He could not say when a decision would be made on whether the men would be charged under immigration laws.

The Rohingyas are an ethnic minority Muslim group from Burma's northwestern Arakan state who claim to be victims of ethnic and religious persecution by the Rangoon military government as well as being deprived of citizenship.

Some 10,000 Rohingyas are estimated to be living undocumented in Malaysia. Malaysia is also home to smaller communities of asylum seekers from the Chin and Karen minority groups.