Myanmar agrees to receive 5,000 Rohingya refugees from Malaysia

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KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced that Myanmar has agreed to accept 5,000 Rohingya asylum seekers currently living in Malaysia, attributing the agreement to the strong relationship between the two countries.

Speaking at a campaign rally on Wednesday ahead of the Negeri Sembilan state elections, Anwar said Malaysia's positive ties with Myanmar had made the arrangement possible. He did not provide further details about the agreement.

Malaysia, a Muslim-majority country, has long served as a destination for Rohingya fleeing persecution in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), about 126,000 Rohingya were registered in Malaysia as of the end of February.

The Rohingya have been denied citizenship in Myanmar for decades, making them the world's largest stateless population, according to the United Nations.

Myanmar's presidential office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Anwar's remarks. The UNHCR office in Kuala Lumpur also did not immediately comment.

Earlier on Wednesday, the UN refugee agency stated that it remained committed to cooperating with Malaysia after the country's foreign minister called for a review of the agency's operations unless stricter controls were introduced for issuing refugee documents.

The announcement comes amid rising tensions involving Rohingya refugees in Malaysia. Authorities recently detained more than 100 Rohingya refugees who had gathered outside the UNHCR office in Kuala Lumpur. They were later released after officials reviewed their documentation.

Police said the refugees possessed valid UNHCR documents and had sought assistance after claiming they had been forced from their homes by residents in the northern state of Penang.

In recent months, Rohingya refugees in Malaysia have faced increased harassment and scrutiny, including the closure of community schools, following the spread of online hate speech and misinformation.

Malaysia, which is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention and classifies asylum seekers as illegal migrants, recently requested that the UNHCR temporarily suspend the registration of new refugees while the country develops its own asylum management system.

In 2021, Malaysia deported more than 1,000 Myanmar nationals by sea despite a court order suspending the move and concerns from rights groups that the deportees included asylum seekers and refugees registered with the UNHCR.