A regional human rights organisation has warned the government that any action to send a group of Acehnese asylum seekers back to their conflict-ridden home province would put the country in violation of international norms on the treatment of refugees.

In a open letter to Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (Forum-Asia) said the forced repatriation of civilians into conflict situations such as that in Aceh is in contravention of international humanitarian law and practice.

Forum-Asia was referring to the government's announcement that it would deport more than 200 Acehnese asylum seekers who were arrested on Tuesday outside a the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office in Kuala Lumpur.

The organisation said the principle of non-refoulement (no forcible return of a person to a country where he or she could face persecution) is a recognised principle of customary international law and is hence binding on all countries.

"Due to the politically-sensitive nature of the conflict in Aceh, Acehnese (asylum seekers) are highly likely to face persecution in the form of arbitrary arrest, detention without trial or execution, if they are returned to Aceh or to other areas in Indonesia," the letter said.

Assist UNHCR

Forum-Asia also urged the government to assist the UNHCR in extending temporary protection to civilians fleeing the Aceh war.

"(We) ask the Malaysian government to support the UNHCR's efforts to protect the asylum seekers by cooperating with registration and documentation, and by ensuring that Acehnese asylum seekers and refugees are not deported until the human rights and conflict situation in Aceh has improved enough to allow for safe repatriation," the organisation said.

While Malaysia had long played host to thousands of Acehnese fleeing the protracted hostilities in the northern Sumatran province, their numbers had surged recently as a result of intensified fighting after the breakdown of peace talks between the separatist Free Aceh Movement and Jakarta.

Last month, the UNHCR announced that it would confer group recognition for all Acehnese civilians as people fleeing conflict in order to provide them with temporary protection.

Since then, the agency had registered hundreds of Acehnese who found their way across the narrow Straits of Melaka over to Malaysia.

Treat Acehnese 'humanely'

In reaction to news of the arrests, Indonesia Foreign Ministry spokesperson Marty Natalegawa told the Antara news agency on Thursday that Jakarta had asked Malaysia to treat the Acehnese asylum seekers "humanely".

"We understand Malaysia's stance in deporting the illegal Acehnese but we also ask the country to treat them humanely," he was reported as saying.

He said Indonesia agreed with Malaysia's decision to deport the people back to Aceh because many of the them were illegal immigrants exploited by unidentified groups to stay in Malaysia under the guise of political asylum seekers.

"We have a common understanding with Malaysia, and we do not want any group to exploit the Acehnese by allowing them to stay in that country to seek political asylum, because in reality they are no more than illegal immigrants," he said.

Last month, the government found itself in a sticky situation after Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) spokesperson Sofyan Daud told AFP that he was in Malaysia on a "secret mission" after leaving Aceh and flying out of Jakarta using a different name.

Although the authorities denied Sofyan's claims and disclaimed any knowledge of the GAM leader's activities, the issue brought the spotlight down on Acehnese civilians seeking refuge in Malaysia.