More Than 4,000 Refugees Registered in Malaysia

More than 4,000 refugees, most of them Rohingya, have been registered by Malaysia through a pilot Refugee Registration Document program. The initiative aims to establish how many refugees live in the country, along with their profiles and locations.

The data could also help the government assess whether refugees who pass security checks might enter Malaysia’s foreign-worker market. Immigration Director-General Zakaria Shaaban said the country estimates it needs about 2.2 million foreign workers across various sectors.

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Most of them entered the country illegally through routes that did not use authorized entry points and without documents.

Registration does not automatically give refugees permission to work. Each person must first undergo refugee-status determination, including interviews with the Immigration Department, as well as security screening by the Royal Malaysia Police. Zakaria said the registration process should be completed by the end of the year before expanding to refugees outside detention depots.

He said many refugees entered Malaysia illegally through routes that did not use authorized entry points and without documents. Most of those registered are Rohingya, while smaller numbers come from countries including Somalia.

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If the number of refugees in the country can be identified, the existing workforce among refugees could be considered to fill vacancies in sectors that need foreign workers, while reducing the need to bring in new workers.

Zakaria stressed that Malaysia is not a refugee-receiving country and has not signed the Refugee Convention. The government therefore does not recognize refugee status under national policy. However, he said humanitarian principles prevent Malaysia from sending people back indiscriminately when their safety in their countries of origin is at risk.

The Immigration Department works with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and continues to urge the agency to move registered refugees with UNHCR cards to third countries quickly. Resettlement takes place every year, Zakaria said, but the numbers remain small.

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Malaysia is not a refugee-receiving country and has not signed the Refugee Convention.