Migrants and refugees are subject to a "vigilante culture" in Malaysia, where civil liberties have not improved despite government pledges to reform, a rights group said today.

In its 10th human rights report , NGO Suaram said the rounding up of undocumented immigrants by "untrained" personnel from a volunteer corps known as Rela had led to "rampant human rights violations and the sanctioning of a vigilante culture."

Suaram said migrants and refugees continued to be the most vulnerable to rights violations, and 20,000 undocumented immigrants were arrested last year.

"These included babies, children, pregnant women and persons in need of medical attention," the rights group said.

"These raids have led to overcrowded detention camps and deteriorating conditions faced by the migrants and refugees. Two undocumented Filipino minors died while being deported from Malaysia," it said.

Violations suffered by the migrants were part of "a continuing lack of resolve to improve civil liberties" despite the country's election to the United Nations Human Rights Council last May, Suaram said.

"The country saw a disturbing trend of intolerance and racist sentiments" in which government leaders and members of the ruling Umno openly issued threats to non-Malays, it said.

Malays are the majority ethnic group but Malaysia has significant populations of ethnic Chinese and Indians.

Police heavy-handedness

Suaram noted "violence and heavy-handedness" by police who cracked down on peaceful assemblies and arbitrarily detained protesters, while the establishment of an independent police complaints and misconduct commission had been indefinitely delayed.

The rights watchdog monitored reports of nine deaths in police custody last year, and 90 people remained incarcerated without trial under the Internal Security Act.

"The government also sought to muzzle the media," Suaram said.

It accused the judiciary of failing to live up to expectations in upholding the constitution in several controversial cases last year.

Suaram said the government had denied requests by UN rights officials to visit the country, and had also failed to submit reports to UN committees on rights of the child, and discrimination against women.

"Malaysia's failure to meet these UN standards on human rights compliance is unacceptable since it is now a member of the UN Human Rights Council," it said.

Last week, rights group Amnesty International warned of a "culture of fear" in Malaysia stemming from human rights abuses and draconian laws discouraging free expression.