A Rohingya refugee feeds a child in front of the office of the UN refugee agency in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, July 27, 2026.
(Bangkok) – The Malaysian government should reverse plans that would permit the forced return of refugees to Myanmar, where they face persecution and other rights abuses, Human Rights Watch said today.
On July 23, 2026, Malaysia’s deputy foreign minister informed parliament that 5,000 Myanmar nationals in immigration detention would be sent back to Myanmar. On July 29, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said that Myanmar authorities had agreed to take back 5,000 ethnic Rohingya.
“Malaysia has for many years hosted refugees from Myanmar who have fled unending oppression and atrocities by the Myanmar military,” said Bryony Lau, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The Malaysian government should show regional leadership in responding to the crisis in Myanmar rather than forcibly returning people who are the targets of the junta’s brutality.”
There are no authoritative figures on the number of Myanmar migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Malaysia. More than 215,000 refugees and asylum seekers are registered with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia, about 194,000 of them from Myanmar, including 126,000 ethnic Rohingya. For decades, UNHCR has processed asylum requests in Malaysia and provided successful applicants with cards recognizing them as refugees, but the cards do not grant legal status.
Recent announcements by Malaysian officials about UNHCR’s role and plans to send people back to Myanmar come amid surging immigration raids and xenophobic rhetoric that have fostered intense public hostility toward refugees and mistrust of UNHCR.
Malaysia has long lacked a legal framework for determining refugee status and all irregular entry and stay in the country is a criminal
