Details on the proposal for an identity card to be issued to Burmese Muslims or Rohingyas in Malaysia formally recognising them as refugees will be known next week, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz said today.

"Last week, I wrote to the Internal Security Ministry for more details on the issuance of the ID such as how it's going to be implemented. I'm expecting a reply sometime next week," he told malaysiakini when contacted.

"We will leave them (Rohingyas) be here while we sort out the procedures involved in issuing the IDs."

He has also reminded ministry officials of the issue on the sidelines of the weekly cabinet meeting in Putrajaya yesterday.

"In fact, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees office in Kuala Lumpur has also requested for the details," he added.

He said only the Rohingyas would be covered by the new policy.

No documents

The government has decided to formally recognise only the Burmese Muslims as refugees so that they can secure jobs and ensure their children's education.

How the government plans to deal with the estimated 10,000 undocumented Burmese Muslims in the country remains unclear.

Mohd Nazri explained earlier that the Rohingyans enter the country using valid documents and then later destroy them, automatically rendering them illegal or "stateless".

"Another problem is that their own governments are refusing to recognise them as citizens because they don't have related documents. This also hampers Malaysia's repatriation efforts," he said.

On Sept 27, the minister was quoted in the Parliament Hansard as saying that the government decided to accord formal recognition to the Rohingyas to prevent enforcement agencies from detaining them for deportation.

"The government can also use the ID to monitor their movements within the country but there is no citizenship status attached to the ID.

"If and when democracy is restored in Myanmar or Burma, these people will be repatriated," he was quoted as saying in the House report.

MP's poser

The minister was responding to questions raised by his Sabah counterparts on the presence of Rohingyas or Burmese Muslims in the East Malaysian state.

DAP MP Teresa Kok had then asked Mohd Nazri in Parliament to furnish the details of the ID application process.

"Since the government has agreed to grant them refugee status by issuing IDs, how are they supposed to apply for this and where? Who is the issuing authority?" she pressed on.

According to the Hansard, Kok also related how representatives from the Rohingya community in Malaysia had been arrested two days after meeting the Myanmar Parliamentary Caucus in mid-September.

Mohd Nazri had responded by referring her to the Immigration Department for any explanation over the detention.