Thousands of Rohingya find refuge under Malaysia’s informal refugee policy
The ongoing persecution of Myanmar's Muslim minority has forced thousands to flee, with over a million seeking asylum in Bangladesh. However, far less attention has been given to the tens of thousands who have sought refuge in Malaysia—Southeast Asia's second-largest Muslim-majority country. In this article, Dr. Lili Song, a senior lecturer at Otago University, shares insights from her journey to Malaysia, where she investigated the country's response to the ongoing Rohingya refugee crisis. Lili’s primary research and teaching areas are refugee law and migration law. Her Malaysia findings will contribute to her research project The Rise and Fall (and Rise Again?) of the Bangkok Principles: Rethinking Regionalism and Rules-Based Refugee Protection in Asia. Dr Song's visit to Malaysia was supported by an Asia New Zealand Foundation Research Grant.
Dr Lili Song with Dr Kimberly Kong. Dr Kong is currently working on a research project studying refugee preschool children in Malaysia
I have been to Southeast Asia many times. Born and raised in a sub-tropical city in China, I adore Southeast Asia which, for me, strikes a fine balance between exoticism and familiarity in terms of landscape, foods, and climate.
However, until 2024, my experience with Malaysia was limited to a short but unforgettable stopover in Kuala Lumpur in 2015. Three young Malaysian Chinese—who I had briefly met in a Queenstown hostel the year before during their working holiday in NZ—drove me around for an non-stop local food tasting tour, making that half day stopover very special.
So in Jun 2024, with the support an Asia New Zealand Foundation research grant, I was pleased to return to Malaysia to research on its refugee policy in light of the on-going displacement of 1 million Rohingyas from Myanmar, which has been a concern of the international community. For example, the UN will hold a high level conference on Rohingya refugees in 2025.
While most of the Rohingya refugees escaped to Bangladesh, a significant number of them fled to Southeast Asia, mainly Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. Having spent two months at Chiang Mai University, Thailand, in 2022 and two weeks at Universitas Indonesia in 2023, I hoped my visit to Malaysia would deepen my understanding of Southeast Asia’s response to Rohingya refugees.
A nurse checks a young girl for symptoms of Diphtheria in the Kutapalong refugee camp, Bangladesh (Photo: Wiki Images)
Compared to Indonesia and Thailand, Malaysia’s refugee policy probably has received the least media attention. Many people would be surprised to learn that Malaysia is the second largest host of Rohingya refugees.
The Malaysian government has not published official statistics about the number of Rohingya refugees it has hosted, but recent estimates range from over 100,000 (UNHCR, 2023) to 200,000 (Doctors without Borders, Oct 2024). For comparison, there are a few thousand Rohingya refugees in Indonesia and a few hundred in Thailand.
Malaysia’s handling of Rohingya refugees is characterised by informality.
Like most Southeast Asian countries, Malaysia is not a party to the UN Refugee Convention and has no legislation recognizing refugee status. It allows the UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, to conduct refugee status determination and issue proof of status to those identified as refugees.
Refugees with UNHCR documentation are allowed to remain in Malaysia and wait for resettlement to a third country. Although Malaysian law does not allow Rohingya refugees to work, the Malaysian government generally does not strictly enforce the relevant legal provisions, as long as UNHCR assumes responsibility for refugee protection and assistance. In reality, many Rohingya refugees work informally in Malaysia.
The Malaysian government’s willingness to tolerance large numbers of Rohingya refugees is probably underpinned by its support for global Muslim solidarity, which is an important part of Malaysia’s foreign policy. The large majority of Malaysians are Muslims. So are the Rohingya. Indeed, Malaysia has a history of offering help to Muslim refugees.
On the other hand, the Malaysian government is keenly aware that public opinion in Malaysia towards Rohingya refugees, or refugees in general, is not always positive. For example, there were complaints that Rohingya refugees competed with Malaysians for business and job opportunities; there are also concerns that providing formal asylum to Rohingya refugees would complicate Malaysia’s racial situation and strain its nation building agenda.
"The Malaysian government’s willingness to tolerance large numbers of Rohingya refugees is probably underpinned by its support for global Muslim solidarity..."
In recent years, the Malaysian government has been low-key about its refugee policy, probably hoping to minimize adverse sentiment among Malaysians against Rohingya refugees.
Non-governmental organizations have been instrumental in supporting Rohingya refugees.
For example:
Aspire Penang works with Rohingya refugees on education, women empowerment, and youth development.
Asylum Access focuses on legal protection and promoting the right to work.
Tenaganita focuses on the issue of protection of women and child refugees from exploitation, discrimination, slavery and human trafficking.
Human Aid Selangor provides health services, shelter and education to Rohingya children.
One question deserves to be asked: why Malaysia attracts far more Rohingya refugees than Indonesia?
Some Rohingya refugees who arrived at Indonesia first even moved to Malaysia. Both are predominantly Muslim countries and non-signatory to the UN Refugee Convention. Indonesia has established an official mechanism for recognizing the status of refugees, while Malaysia has not.
Maybe economy plays a role. Malaysia has a higher GDP per capita than Indonesia, although Indonesia has a larger population and higher national GDP.
Rohingya orphans being taught in Selayang, Malaysia (Photo: Wiki Images)
But economy may not be the only factor.
In Malaysia, wherever I went, I could not help noticing how well the Malay, the Chinese and the Indian—three main ethnic groups in Malaysia—mix and mingle. That ability to maintain peaceful coexistence (which is a pillar of Malaysian national governance and foreign policy) is extraordinary, especially given that the three groups have different religions and that, while the Malaysian Chinese and Indian are fluent in the Malay language, they maintain very well their own languages and cultural traditions. Those are things I did not see in Jakarta.
My two-week visit to Malaysia was short but richly filled with intellectual stimulation. I flew out of Penang, grateful for the remarkable hospitality Malaysia provided, looking forward to my next visit to this amazing country.
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