World
Myanmar receives nearly 1,500 returnees from Malaysia despite safety warnings
Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals returned from Malaysia arrived near Yangon on 4 October. Malaysia says the returns were voluntary, but the UN refugee agency was denied access to assess consent. Rights groups warn that conflict and persecution leave returnees at risk despite official assurances.
Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals returned from Malaysia arrived near Yangon on 4 October, as the United Nations and rights groups warned that their safety could not be assured.
Three Myanmar naval vessels docked at the base at Thanlyin, AFP reported. The ships had left Malaysia carrying 1,476 people, according to Myanmar’s government, in the first stage of a programme covering about 5,000 returnees.
Families gathered outside the base to collect relatives, although officials said some returnees would first be taken to other locations in the Yangon region.
Malaysia says the returnees agreed to voluntary repatriation from detention centres. Myanmar has pledged safe and dignified returns. Rights groups question whether people facing poor detention conditions had a meaningful choice.
The UN refugee agency said it had not been allowed to meet the migrants to establish whether their decisions were freely made and informed. It remains unclear whether members of the persecuted Rohingya minority were among this group.
Myanmar has faced widespread conflict since the military seized power in 2021. The arrivals mark a new stage in the repatriation programme, but do not resolve concerns over coercion, persecution or the safety of those returned.
