Malaysia Starts Sending 1,500 Myanmar Nationals Home

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Lumut: Malaysia has begun returning about 1,500 Myanmar nationals as part of a major scheme to return up to 5,000 people to Myanmar. The first phase covers 1,476 people and is carried out through a voluntary repatriation program.

The returnees are being transferred on Myanmar naval vessels, with Malaysian authorities claiming that the process was organised with Myanmar and that the individuals decided to return.

The United Nations and human rights organisations have opposed the plan, citing Myanmar's ongoing violence as a severe worry for the safety of individuals being returned. The United Nations Refugee Agency said it was not involved in selecting refugees for repatriation.

Rights groups have also warned that some returns, particularly Rohingya refugees, may risk arrest, persecution, or forced military conscription upon returning to Myanmar.