THE breakout that occurred at the Sg Bakap immigration depot signals the larger issue of a major policy failure in Malaysia’s treatment of refugees. We should be ashamed of ourselves and our government for failing to address this issue appropriately, and this is despite the fact that Malaysia has been a destination country since 1975 when Vietnamese refugees were arriving by boat onto our shores. Despite this experience, we have failed to put a proper humane refugee policy in place, and worse, we are now a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Today, thousands of refugees from Myanmar flee their homeland because they face violence, rape, murder and cruel treatment in their country. They have no choice but to flee to a safe country. However, we have failed to recognise this need and to provide a safe space for them. Our treatment and response have been cruel and inhuman. There is no need to mention the ill treatment refugees face in Malaysia as it is a well-known fact.

Human Rights Commission of Malaysia chief Jerald Joseph recently revealed that Rohingya refugees have been kept in immigration department custody since 2020 with no access to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) to verify their refugee status. The verification process allows for refugees to be identified, provided with a UNHCR card and released from detention. This is unacceptable. UNHCR has been blocked from accessing these detention centres since 2019. Why is this so? Refugees should not be detained, but protected!

Home Minister Hamzah Zainuddin revealed this morning that all 528 refugees that broke out from the immigration detention centre had been held there for two years. What is shocking and disgraceful is the fact that the detainees include around 83 women and 93 children, as revealed by Kedah police chief Wan Hassan Wan Ahmad this morning. 

The government champions the Palestinian issue at the international stage, but when it comes to refugees on their own shores, they treat them inhumanely. This is hypocrisy. How could we detain a Rohingya child running from murder, rape and violence from their homeland but speak out so strongly on Palestinian children being murdered by Israeli bombs? 

The refugees that escaped the detention centre did so for a reason. They were being detained for 2 years despite in need of help. The living conditions in detention centres are known to be a living hell, with cramped spaces, dirty toilets and horrible food. The fact that these detainees were being denied access to UNHCR also cuts them out from the outside world.

We do not know how much they were suffering in the detention centres and what sort of abuse they were facing that led to them losing their patience and planning the escape. They cannot be at fault for trying to save themselves from oppression. The death of children and women on the highway was an unnecessary episode that could have been avoided if these refugees were given access to UNHCR and legal representation in the very first instance when they arrived here. There was no need to keep them in detention.

This is a wakeup call for the Malaysian government to relook at its policies on refugees in the country. Malaysia must be an example for the Asean region and lead the way in rolling out humanitarian policies to protect refugees in our country. Look at the Ukraine crisis and how European countries are coming together to provide shelter for refugees fleeing the war. There is so much to learn from them. 

We must ratify the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and amend our laws to provide protection to refugees seeking refuge in our homeland. They should be provided with legal employment opportunities, free healthcare and education and most importantly, not be detained. Many industries are facing labour shortages in the country, especially in plantations. Why do we need to bring in thousands of foreign workers from Bangladesh when we already have thousands of unemployed people on our doorstep? We could provide them with jobs rather than detain them.

UNHCR on the other hand has also failed miserably in its advocacy efforts in Malaysia. More needs to be done by the UNHCR to help improve conditions for refugees here and it needs to up the pressure on the Malaysian government. 

And as for the incident that occurred at Sg Bakap detention centre, there must be a Royal Commission of Inquiry set up to investigate the entire episode. Malaysians need to know the truth of what happened in that detention centre that led to the escape and death of six refugees. The condition of the detention centre must be investigated. Their treatments must be investigated, and the events leading up to the death of the six refugees must be investigated.

The Bar Council must also step in to provide legal representation to the refugees being charged in court for fleeing. There is a serious risk of injustice here as there exists a language barrier and many of them are also in fear and might be forced by surrounding circumstances to plead guilty. – April 21, 2022.

* Sudhagaran Stanley is cofounder of Lifebridge Learning Centre, a school that provides free education to refugee children.