UNHCR Urges Safeguards for Myanmar Refugees After Malaysia Returns Individuals
The UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Edem Wosornu, has expressed concern over the return of Myanmar nationals from Malaysia, highlighting that some individuals may require international protection. These returns occurred despite Malaysian authorities stating the process was voluntary, as those returned had been held in immigration detention. The UNHCR did not have access to these individuals to assess if their decisions to return were genuinely free and informed. The Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic minority from Myanmar, have been repeatedly targeted by Myanmar's military, which seized power in a 2021 coup. A significant military operation in 2017 in Rakhine state forced hundreds of thousands to flee, with over a million now settled in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. The UN's top humanitarian, Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher, also condemned a recent airstrike on a market in Rakhine state that resulted in dozens of casualties, emphasizing the need to protect civilians and respect international...
