Malaysia begins voluntary Myanmar repatriation despite UN safety warning

Malaysia on Monday began sending back Myanmar nationals under what it described as a voluntary repatriation programme, even as the UN refugee agency and rights groups warned that conditions in Myanmar remain unsafe. The first batch of 1,476 people is part of a plan to repatriate 5,000 Myanmar nationals in stages from Malaysia.

The move comes amid continuing armed conflict and political instability in Myanmar since the military seized power in 2021. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has defended the policy as a diplomatic effort to find a long-term solution, saying Malaysia cannot host refugees indefinitely and that Myanmar must take responsibility for its citizens.

Malaysia's Home Ministry said 10,388 Myanmar nationals were being held at immigration detention depots across the country as of August 15. A ministry official confirmed that the repatriation was under way on Monday.

Buses believed to be carrying the returnees arrived at a stadium in Manjung town in Malaysia's central Perak state, where security was tight. Ships believed to be from Myanmar were docked at the nearby Lumut naval base.

The ministry said those in the first group had agreed to return and that the process would be carried out safely using two Myanmar navy warships and a hospital ship. Details about their identities and individual circumstances were not immediately available.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and rights groups have urged caution over the return programme, saying the security and humanitarian situation in parts of Myanmar remains volatile and that those being sent back could face serious risks.

Malaysia is home to about 215,600 refugees and asylum seekers registered with the UNHCR, including about 126,000 Rohingya Muslims, one of Southeast Asia's largest refugee communities. Although it hosts them, Malaysia is not a party to the UN Refugee Convention and treats refugees as undocumented migrants.

The Rohingya have faced decades of discrimination and persecution in Myanmar, where authorities have largely denied them citizenship and refused to recognise them as an ethnic group. In Malaysia, they have also faced growing public hostility driven by concerns over jobs, public services, security and the size of the refugee population, along with misinformation and inflammatory rhetoric on social media.

Anwar has said he plans to invite Myanmar leader Min Aung Hlaing to Malaysia to discuss the long-running issue of refugees and undocumented migrants. In a podcast posted online on September 16, he said, "I am inviting him to say that we can be friends and trade, we can accept Myanmar, but Myanmar must accept them back." He added, "To me, that's better diplomacy than just shouting angrily at Myanmar."

Myanmar Foreign Ministry official Han Win Aung said the latest plan follows repatriation operations in 2021 and 2022, when Myanmar received more than 1,100 of its nationals stranded in Malaysia. He said the repatriation involved genuine citizens and was not aimed at bringing back Rohingya people.

In all, Malaysia has started repatriating Myanmar nationals in stages under a voluntary programme, despite warnings from the UNHCR and rights groups, while both governments present the move as part of a continuing effort to address a long-running cross-border issue.