IT is not an easy task for refugees to get vaccinated here as they have to face many hurdles to get inoculated, welfare groups said.

They said some of the issues faced by the refugees are language barriers, transportation to vaccination centres, the MySejahtera App and fear of getting arrested by the authorities.

This is despite Malaysia providing walk-in vaccinations for all foreigners from August 9 to 22.

The Alliance of Chin Refugees (ACR) founder James Bawi said the most common issues faced by the refugees are getting registered on MySejahtera, safety, and transportation to the vaccination centre.

“We have found that some refugees cancelled their appointments due to the distance they have to travel to the vaccination centre.

“Others have called us to find out if it’s safe to go to the centre for fear of being reprimanded by the authorities,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

James said another issue faced by refugees is that many of them are unfamiliar with using the MySejahtera App.

He said they have posted all the relevant information pertaining to the vaccination on their Facebook and sent the information through WhatsApp.

“We have translated all (details on) the government’s vaccination programme to Burmese for the refugees and posted it on FB,” he said.

“We also have translators on standby if they have difficulty communicating at the vaccination centres.”

James said it is crucial for all refugees to take up the government’s offer to get vaccinated under its walk-in programme.

“We hope the government will assist the refugees and ensure that no action is taken against them as they get vaccinated.”

Currently, there are 179,550 refugees and asylum-seekers registered with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia.

Some 154,860 are from Myanmar, comprising 102,960 Rohingya, 22,500 Chin and 29,390 others from conflict-affected areas or fleeing persecution in Myanmar.

Refugees must capitalise on walk-in programme

Beyond Borders Malaysia founder Mahi Ramakrishnan said refugees fear that the authorities will use the MySejahtera App to track their location.

“This is the ground sentiment and the government has done nothing to assure the refugees otherwise,” Mahi said.

As for aiding the refugees, she said they get their details, which are then passed to another civil society group, SEED, which will register the refugees.

“Many refugees do not have their UNHCR cards yet, and that increases their fear of potential arrests.

“It’s not easy to convince the refugees that there would be no arrests once the vaccination process is completed.

“And we cannot blame them when we have not lived up to our promises (of not detaining them).”

She said that so far, they have registered 91 individuals from a Myanmar community called Zomi and Afghan refugees.

“Some of them have gotten their appointments but I don’t know the exact number,” Mahi said.

“The government has failed to gain the trust of both migrants and refugees. They make up a big part of our society and it’s imminent that they are also vaccinated and for the process to be expedited.”

She said besides collecting details and passing it to SEED for registration, they have also been sending self-test kits to refugees who complain of fever, headache and body aches.

UNHCR assisting refugee community

The UNHCR’s community-based protection officer Dr Susheela Balasundaram said, as part of its support to the government, the body, together with their partners, have begun mobilising and reaching out to refugees and asylum-seekers.

This, she said, includes undertaking relevant communication efforts and community engagement activities in line with the Health Ministry’s vaccine preparedness communications plan.

“For instance, at the request of the government, UNHCR provided assistance in translating vaccine information posters and audio files into 11 languages commonly spoken by refugees.

“UNHCR is also working with our civil society group partners for community engagement and mobilisation to support the Health Ministry’s efforts.”

Susheela added that, as part of the One UN team being led by the UN Resident Coordinator, they have been actively participating in planning meetings on the implementation of the vaccine programme, especially where it affects refugees and asylum-seekers.

“As part of the planning process, UNHCR has also shared with the government refugee population data as far as the district level, and provided technical input to the planning where required.

“This includes sharing this data with various ministries, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Health Ministry, various state health departments, and the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC).”

She said based on preliminary discussions held with representatives of refugee communities in Malaysia, the feedback has been broadly positive.

“Refugee communities have expressed gratitude to the government for including them in the national immunisation programme.

“While some refugees are still cautious about coming out for vaccinations due to the general fear of arrests and concerns about harassment due to xenophobia, the initial feedback is a keen interest among the community to come forward for vaccination.”

Susheela said this positive response is consistent with the communities’ overall interest in accessing affordable healthcare where provided, including when vaccination for other diseases have been offered, for instance, to benefit refugee children.

She said that, given (that) … the healthcare systems are overstretched at this time, the UNHCR does not receive official notifications of refugees and asylum-seekers who have received the Covid-19 vaccination.

“We rely on refugee communities themselves to report to us and thus, we do not have complete data on this.

“UNHCR stands ready to continue providing support to the Malaysian government in its Covid-19 response, including in the implementation of the immunisation programme.” – August 19, 2021.