YANG di-Pertuan Besar Negri Sembilan Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir has urged the government to review its policy that denies children who are refugees or stateless access to formal education.

In a royal address at the Human Rights Day 2022 forum today, he called for the review of the policy to break the generational cycle of poverty among refugees or stateless people, saying that it will be a significant step to benefit the country.

“Government policy has denied children who are refugees or stateless access to formal education. This policy results in a generational cycle of poverty and destitution, which imposes a burden on society,” he said.

“If these children are given access to education, they can eventually fend for themselves and be independent of government assistance.”

He said some civil society organisations (CSOs) have taken up the call to provide assistance to this group and within their means, have created some success stories.

He said one such example is the initiative taken by Yayasan Chow Kit, a non-profit organisation that operates a 24-hour crisis and drop-in centre providing meals, therapy, case management and educational programmes for at-risk children who live in the Chow Kit area in Kuala Lumpur.

“To date, the Yayasan (Chow Kit) has over 100 successful youths who are able to pursue tertiary education or become owners of business enterprises. This success is due to some relaxation of the government policy,” he said.

Tuanku Muhriz said since 2017, the Education Ministry has registered 15 refugee learning centres as private education institutions.

“But much more needs to be done, as according to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, there are some 40,000 refugee and asylum seeker children registered in Malaysia,” he said.

On the poverty issue particularly with regard to the hardcore poor and the homeless, Tuanku Muhriz said the government has taken many initiatives towards this end, but more needs to be done.

He said many CSOs have stepped up to provide care for them but holistic and long-term solutions are needed and hoped that government agencies will work together with these CSOs to overcome the issues of destitution and homelessness.

He called on the government to interact more closely with the CSOs and review some of the policies.

“With these steps, the country can get closer to ensuring that no one is left behind,” he said.

On health, Tuanku Muhriz thanked the frontliners for putting themselves at risk in the discharge of their duties.

“I urge the relevant authorities to constantly review the accessibility by marginalised groups to healthcare facilities,” he said.

Tuanku Muhriz said over the years, the government had done much to alleviate the lives of marginalised persons while CSOs on their own initiatives have filled the gaps to improve further the livelihood of this group.

Human Rights Day is celebrated on December 10 every year and for this year, the theme is “Strengthening and enhancing human rights towards leaving no one behind”. – Bernama, December 12, 2022.