Key facts
- Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals were repatriated from Malaysia.
- The returnees arrived in Yangon on Sunday.
- UNHCR and rights groups warned that conditions in Myanmar are unsafe for return.
- Returnees face risks of persecution, detention, or forced military conscription.
- The returnees included 86 women.
- The repatriation is part of a plan to send 5,000 Myanmar nationals back in stages.
Malaysia began repatriating nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals on Sunday, including 86 women, despite warnings from the UN refugee agency and rights groups that conditions in their home country remain unsafe. The returnees, who had been convicted of immigration violations in Malaysia, arrived in Yangon on Sunday.
The repatriation is part of a larger plan agreed upon with Myanmar's military regime to send as many as 5,000 people back to the country in stages. Malaysia states the process is voluntary, but concerns persist that those returning could face military recruitment, persecution, or detention amid the ongoing civil war.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military seized power on February 1, 2021, leading to widespread opposition and conflict. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated that current conditions do not support the safe and sustainable return of refugees and that it was not involved in the agreement with Malaysia. UNHCR data indicates approximately 193,000 refugees from Myanmar are in Malaysia, with about two-thirds being Rohingya Muslims, who have historically faced persecution in Myanmar.
Activist James Bawi Thang Bik expressed fears that returnees could be forced to fight on frontlines, likening it to a death sentence. Malaysia's Home Ministry has indicated that over 10,000 other Myanmar nationals are held in immigration detention centers. Myanmar's Foreign Ministry official Han Win Aung stated that the repatriation involved "genuine citizens."