Pulai MP calls for clear govt policies on Rohingya refugees

PARLIAMENT | Suhaizan Kaiat (Harapan-Pulai) today called for the government to introduce clear guidelines regarding Rohingya refugees.

He said that in his parliamentary constituency, a federal district in Johor Bahru, more than 200 Rohingya refugees live in slums abandoned by locals who have moved to low-cost flats.

"Pulai is of the view that the government has no clear policies and guidelines to manage these refugees, who cause discomfort to the people.

“Therefore, there needs to be clear rules to manage them so as not to disturb the harmony and well-being of the people in this country,” he said in his debate on the royal address in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Of the 186,490 refugees and asylum seekers registered with the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia, 108,310 are Rohingyas, he said.

Malaysia is host to refugees and asylum seekers from 50 countries, including Myanmar, Syria, Afghanistan, and Iran.

Despite the significant number of refugees in the country, Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or the 1967 protocol related to the convention.

This means in Malaysia, refugees who do not have valid visas are deemed “undocumented migrants” and are denied basic rights such as employment or education.

The plight of refugees has put successive Malaysian governments under criticism from local and international human rights groups, pushing for a long-awaited recognition of refugees in the country.

‘No restrictions’

Meanwhile, Suhaizan claimed the Rohingya refugees have created a settlement of their own with water supply, electricity, grocery stores, restaurants and schools “without any restrictions”.

“They move freely and have their own vehicles. They can throw garbage at will, especially in the nearby river.

“Their presence threatens the lives of the people in this country,” he alleged.

He cited the case of three Rohingya men who were shot dead by police officers in Selayang Jaya in December last year. They were believed to have been involved in more than 50 robberies and burglaries in six states.

Suhaizan said Malaysia had accepted refugees "with full courtesy” as no third country had expressed willingness to accept them.

According to the United Nations, a refugee is someone forced to flee their home country because of persecution, war, or violence.

This includes fear of persecution for being a certain ethnicity, tribe or religion, their political opinion, their sexuality, or membership in certain social groups.

Last year, Yante Ismail, UNHCR’s spokesperson in Kuala Lumpur, told Malaysiakini that the cost of protecting and assisting refugees in the country is largely borne by the refugee communities themselves.

A study by UNHCR found that 60 percent of adult refugees in Malaysia were employed, mostly in the informal sector which covered around 23 percent of total employment in the country in 2021.

However, this informal employment puts refugees at much risk, such as forced labour, detention, and exploitation, the International Labour Organization found in its 2019 study.

Other studies found that allowing refugees to legally participate in the workforce could have very positive outcomes on the Malaysian economy.

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