Refugees worry about post-amnesty attack

A rights group representing Rohingyas in Malaysia has appealed to the government to exclude from an amnesty program undocumented migrants registered with the UNHCR.

“We are worried what will happen to us after the amnesty period as there will be mass crackdown on undocumented migrants and based on past experiences many refugees were arrested, detained, charged and deported to the Thailand border,” Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization of Malaysia president Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani was quoted in local media.

Malaysia plans to offer the amnesty program to thousands of illegal foreign workers, with a chance for them to return home without facing legal action.

This is the third such amnesty program in Malaysia.

A May 20 announcement by the government on the program did not make clear if those with refugee status and caught working would be considered illegal workers.

The same worry was echoed by some Catholic Church people in the Kuala Lumpur area who serve Myanmar refugees, mostly ethnic Chin.

“For migrant workers whom have been here in the country without documentation, it’s a good chance for them to return home. But for the refugees whom are seeking protection in our country, it is going to be a nightmare for them as soon as the crackdown begins after the amnesty period,” said Sudhagaran Stanley, who works in the migrants ministry of Penang diocese.

Most refugees work in plantations, vegetable farms and construction sites. They are at the mercy of employers who pay them little and who often withhold salaries for long periods of time.

A Church development worker said he hopes Church ministries serving migrants would be able to meet with the relevant authorities on the matter.

“We are talking about refugees here as a whole” regardless of country of origin. “We are not making any distinction, be they Christians or Muslims,” said the Church worker who requested anonymity.

Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees.