ELIZABETH JACKSON: The deal between the Malaysian and Australian governments to share the processing and resettlement of asylum seekers has put the spotlight on the way refugees are treated in Malaysia.
Our South-East Asia correspondent Zoe Daniel filed this report from Kuala Lumpur.
ZOE DANIEL: In Malaysia well over 90,000, mostly Burmese, refugees wait. They usually live in city slums, dozens crammed into small apartments, declared people of concern by the UN but awaiting official refugee status before they can be resettled.
Malaysia takes no permanent refugees. This is a mere transit point, a holding centre, a limbo land.
John is typical, he and his friends can't legally work and they live in constant fear of arrest for doing illegal jobs.
JOHN: We know ourselves that we are illegal, we are resettled illegally in this place, so everybody have, some of our fellows have working in their working place, so they also they have to hide, so we don't have the freedom to stay wherever they are.
ZOE DANIEL: Malaysia barely tolerates those who cross its border to escape things like forced labour and conscription at home. Those who are caught before they can register with the UNHCR face mandatory whipping and detention in notorious centres. Some who have registered are still detained unless they bribe police. And the UNHCR, which has only one office in KL, sometimes takes months to respond.
Alan Vernon is the UNHCR representative in Kuala Lumpur. He admits it's a demanding role for the organisation, but argues that the Australian plan may lead to improved conditions for everyone.
ALAN VERNON: The extent to which we are slow is a function of the numbers, and the numbers are significant and if we compare the size of our capacity against the numbers of individuals that we're trying to help take care of and help make sure they get protection, it is a difficult challenge.
But we work this because we can, we use all of the capacity that we have to try to make sure that people get the best possible support and we try to engage partners, the refugee community themselves, and the Malaysian peoples as volunteers and really anybody else who is ready to help. We work with them to try and improve the conditions and for this group we'll do the same.
ZOE DANIEL: My sense if that the Australian Government in the absence of a legal framework for asylum seekers and refugees here will be looking to you at UNHCR to provide that support and structure. Can you cope with this extra influx?
ALAN VERNON: As we understand it, the role that's envisioned for UNHCR is essentially consistent with the role that we have and the current population we're dealing with here is over 90,000 people. So the addition of 800 does not fundamentally change the numbers.
What's important for us is trying to make sure we seize this opportunity to help improve conditions for everybody and we think that there's opportunities to do that, we would expect that this agreement will have guarantees and safeguards around the conditions of these individuals and if those turn out to be somewhat better than those for the other population ideally we have an opportunity to try and raise standards for the entire population. And that's a win-win I think for everybody concerned.
ZOE DANIEL: However refugee advocates have real concerns about the sacrifice that 800 people will make in return.
Researcher David Corlett says that most boat people who make it to Australia are eventually proven to have fled persecution, and the new policy will put them straight back into harm's way in Malaysia.
DAVID CORLETT: I think overwhelmingly, people arrive in Australia by boat because they are in need of international protection. And the statistics prove that. The vast majority, 90 per cent or more of people who arrive in Australia by boat are found indeed to be refugees, that is, they're found to be in need to protection from persecution.
So it seems to me that the conversation about stopping the boats needs to be a conversation about how we can ensure that people have their protection needs met whether that's in Australia or in the region or internationally.
ZOE DANIEL: The Malaysian government has promised to treat asylum seekers with dignity and respect, however there's no indication that extra resources or support structures will be introduced. The minimum wait for resettlement for those transiting through Malaysia is two to three years, but many wait much, much longer.
In Kuala Lumpur this is Zoe Daniel for Correspondents Report.
Our South-East Asia correspondent Zoe Daniel filed this report from Kuala Lumpur.
ZOE DANIEL: In Malaysia well over 90,000, mostly Burmese, refugees wait. They usually live in city slums, dozens crammed into small apartments, declared people of concern by the UN but awaiting official refugee status before they can be resettled.
Malaysia takes no permanent refugees. This is a mere transit point, a holding centre, a limbo land.
John is typical, he and his friends can't legally work and they live in constant fear of arrest for doing illegal jobs.
JOHN: We know ourselves that we are illegal, we are resettled illegally in this place, so everybody have, some of our fellows have working in their working place, so they also they have to hide, so we don't have the freedom to stay wherever they are.
ZOE DANIEL: Malaysia barely tolerates those who cross its border to escape things like forced labour and conscription at home. Those who are caught before they can register with the UNHCR face mandatory whipping and detention in notorious centres. Some who have registered are still detained unless they bribe police. And the UNHCR, which has only one office in KL, sometimes takes months to respond.
Alan Vernon is the UNHCR representative in Kuala Lumpur. He admits it's a demanding role for the organisation, but argues that the Australian plan may lead to improved conditions for everyone.
ALAN VERNON: The extent to which we are slow is a function of the numbers, and the numbers are significant and if we compare the size of our capacity against the numbers of individuals that we're trying to help take care of and help make sure they get protection, it is a difficult challenge.
But we work this because we can, we use all of the capacity that we have to try to make sure that people get the best possible support and we try to engage partners, the refugee community themselves, and the Malaysian peoples as volunteers and really anybody else who is ready to help. We work with them to try and improve the conditions and for this group we'll do the same.
ZOE DANIEL: My sense if that the Australian Government in the absence of a legal framework for asylum seekers and refugees here will be looking to you at UNHCR to provide that support and structure. Can you cope with this extra influx?
ALAN VERNON: As we understand it, the role that's envisioned for UNHCR is essentially consistent with the role that we have and the current population we're dealing with here is over 90,000 people. So the addition of 800 does not fundamentally change the numbers.
What's important for us is trying to make sure we seize this opportunity to help improve conditions for everybody and we think that there's opportunities to do that, we would expect that this agreement will have guarantees and safeguards around the conditions of these individuals and if those turn out to be somewhat better than those for the other population ideally we have an opportunity to try and raise standards for the entire population. And that's a win-win I think for everybody concerned.
ZOE DANIEL: However refugee advocates have real concerns about the sacrifice that 800 people will make in return.
Researcher David Corlett says that most boat people who make it to Australia are eventually proven to have fled persecution, and the new policy will put them straight back into harm's way in Malaysia.
DAVID CORLETT: I think overwhelmingly, people arrive in Australia by boat because they are in need of international protection. And the statistics prove that. The vast majority, 90 per cent or more of people who arrive in Australia by boat are found indeed to be refugees, that is, they're found to be in need to protection from persecution.
So it seems to me that the conversation about stopping the boats needs to be a conversation about how we can ensure that people have their protection needs met whether that's in Australia or in the region or internationally.
ZOE DANIEL: The Malaysian government has promised to treat asylum seekers with dignity and respect, however there's no indication that extra resources or support structures will be introduced. The minimum wait for resettlement for those transiting through Malaysia is two to three years, but many wait much, much longer.
In Kuala Lumpur this is Zoe Daniel for Correspondents Report.
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