TWO human rights groups have condemned Malaysia’s plan to deport 135 Myanmar refugees.

Alliance of Chin Refugees and Beyond Borders, in a joint statement today, urged the government to stop their deportation immediately.

“This deportation must be stopped immediately as Malaysia is bound by the non-refoulement principle, which prohibits the government from sending people back to a place where they would likely face persecution,” they said.

“Thousands of Myanmarese have been tortured and imprisoned while many died following a coup that threw out Aung Sung Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government.

“Given this ground situation in Myanmar and Malaysia’s vehement condemnation of the violence targeted at ordinary citizens and activists, this planned deportation is shocking.”

The military ousted Suu Kyi’s elected government in February last year and declared a state of emergency.

Suu Kyi has been placed under house arrest and charged with possessing illegal walkie-talkies and violating the country’s natural disaster law.

The groups said the deportation of the 135 refugees back to Myanmar could mean death or abuse in the hands of the military leadership if they were found to be members of the Civil Disobedience Movement, a group fighting against the country’s post-coup military regime.

“Malaysia has an obligation under international law and humanitarian principles to protect the rights of refugees,” they said.

“We hope it would, therefore, honour its responsibility instead of deporting the Myanmarese detainees to face death.”

Malaysia is not a signatory to the United Nations convention on refugees, and asylum seekers and refugees are considered “illegal migrants” under the law, unable to work legally, access medical care or send their children to school.

Last year, Malaysia deported 1,086 Myanmar refugees despite a court order halting the repatriation.

There are also nearly 180,000 refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

The vast majority are from Myanmar, including 102,250 Rohingya, as well as tens of thousands from other ethnic minority groups who have fled conflict in their homeland. – September 3, 2022.