Myanmar ships with returnees from Malaysia enter home waters, state media says
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Three Myanmar navy vessels carried 1,476 Myanmar nationals into Myanmar waters on Oct 1. The returnees are the first group to be sent back as part of a repatriation plan involving up to 5,000 people.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals were repatriated from Malaysian immigration detention and arrived in Myanmar aboard navy ships amid ongoing civil war risks.
- The United Nations expressed grave concern about the safety of returnees and urged Malaysia to halt repatriations and cooperate on refugee solutions.
- Myanmar authorities provided care during the voyage, and returnees will receive further assistance to resettle, while talks continue between Myanmar and Malaysia on refugee returns.
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Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals sent back from Malaysia aboard navy ships are expected to reach the war-torn country’s commercial hub of Yangon within days, state media reported on Oct 2, despite warnings from the United Nations and rights groups that the returnees could be at risk amid a raging civil war.
Three Myanmar navy vessels carried 1,476 Myanmar nationals into Myanmar waters on Oct 1, the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported.
The nationals have been repatriated from Malaysian immigration detention camps after serving sentences for illegal stays and violating immigration regulations.
The UN has said conditions in Myanmar “do not support the safe and sustainable return of refugees”, although Malaysia insists that the process is strictly voluntary.
The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Kelley E. Currie, said on Oct 1 that she was “gravely concerned”. She urged Malaysia to stop the repatriations and work with the UN to address the situation of Myanmar refugees.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since a military coup in 2021 ousted an elected civilian government, triggering a civil war in the impoverished South-east Asian country.
Myanmar’s junta chief-turned-President Min Aung Hlaing will visit Malaysia in October, Malaysian state media reported, as the two countries continue talks on returning refugees and people displaced by conflict.
Naval personnel and Myanmar authorities have provided the returnees with medical care, meals and clothing during the voyage, state media reported.
Family members and local authorities will meet the returnees at the port in Yangon and arrange transport to their home towns, state media said, adding that those returning would get further help to resettle.
State media featured interviews with three unnamed returnees, two of whom said they had been held in Malaysian immigration detention prior to their return.
It was not immediately clear whether any members of the Muslim minority Rohingya community were among the returnees, the first group to be sent back as part of a repatriation plan involving up to 5,000 people.
Malaysia has stepped up immigration enforcement in recent years amid rising local hostility against refugees, particularly the Rohingya, many of whom fled Myanmar after a 2017 military crackdown that is being investigated for genocide offences at the International Court of Justice. REUTERS