Not a word of thanks, and don’t pretend to care — Chew Kok Liang
OCTOBER 3 — Malaysia has no legal duty to host the Rohingya, yet it did. Malaysia never signed the 1951 Refug...
Malaysia has been providing refuge to Rohingya refugees since the early 1990s, despite lacking a legal obligation to do so. The country is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, and under Malaysian law, refugees are treated as irregular migrants and can be detained or deported. The UNHCR acknowledges that registration does not grant refugees legal immigration status in Malaysia.
Despite this, Malaysia has sheltered over 126,000 Rohingya since 1992. In 2025, only 1,920 refugees were submitted for resettlement, a significant decline from 9,125 in 2024. Critics argue that Malaysia's efforts are undermined by the lack of support from wealthier nations, such as the West, which does not take in large numbers of Rohingya refugees.
They contend that while Malaysia is being lectured on international law, it is not following through with its own commitments.
Written by urgent.news from Malay Mail's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
