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Burmese Refugees in Malaysia
October 24, 2008 | Camilla Olson | Tagged as: Malaysia
When I was on mission in Malaysia in April, we interviewed several different groups of Burmese refugees, including ethnic Mon, Kachin, Chin, Rakhine and Rohingya. All of these groups told us the same story - of refugees being arrested by immigration or police and the terrible conditions they have to endure in the detention centers. Young and old, men and women, and even those registered with the UN Refugee Agency - no refugee is safe from the threat of arrest in Malaysia.
Since our mission, the arrests have continued. Just this week, an appeal was made to stop the targeting of refugees in Malaysia. Refugees who are arrested and put into detention centers get little access to outside assistance. They are eventually deported to Thailand where they are picked up by traffickers and forced to pay for their release. If they cannot pay the traffickers then they are sold into forced labor.
Those refugees who have been able to avoid arrest live in constant fear of immigration raids carried out by a volunteer corps called RELA. The abuses carried out by RELA are well documented and calls have been made to disband the group, which would go a long way in improving the security situation for all refugees and migrants in Malaysia.
The most important thing however is that the protection needs of refugees in Malaysia become more widely known. There must be more international pressure on the government of Malaysia, which is a member of the UN Human Rights Council, to improve its treatment of these vulnerable people. Personal accounts like those featured in a new website called fifty refugees are an important step in this direction. The stories, gathered by a Malaysian national, powerfully illustrate the courage and resilience which sustains the refugees, despite the abuses they must face.
Since our mission, the arrests have continued. Just this week, an appeal was made to stop the targeting of refugees in Malaysia. Refugees who are arrested and put into detention centers get little access to outside assistance. They are eventually deported to Thailand where they are picked up by traffickers and forced to pay for their release. If they cannot pay the traffickers then they are sold into forced labor.
Those refugees who have been able to avoid arrest live in constant fear of immigration raids carried out by a volunteer corps called RELA. The abuses carried out by RELA are well documented and calls have been made to disband the group, which would go a long way in improving the security situation for all refugees and migrants in Malaysia.
The most important thing however is that the protection needs of refugees in Malaysia become more widely known. There must be more international pressure on the government of Malaysia, which is a member of the UN Human Rights Council, to improve its treatment of these vulnerable people. Personal accounts like those featured in a new website called fifty refugees are an important step in this direction. The stories, gathered by a Malaysian national, powerfully illustrate the courage and resilience which sustains the refugees, despite the abuses they must face.
