Malaysia puts deportations to Myanmar on hold until after Asean meets, sources say

Right groups raised concerns over the safety of deportees when Malaysia sent back 1,086 Myanmar nationals on Myanmar navy ships last month

Sources said a decision was take on Wednesday to delay a plan to deport a second batch until after a proposed Asean meeting

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Myanmar migrants to be deported from Malaysia are seen inside an immigration truck in February. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:18pm, 24 Mar 2021Updated: 8:22pm, 24 Mar 2021

Malaysia decided on Wednesday to postpone planned deportations to Myanmar until after a proposed emergency regional summit to discuss the crisis there brought on by a military coup, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Right groups raised concerns over the safety of deportees when Malaysia sent back 1,086 Myanmar nationals on Myanmar navy ships last month, just weeks after the military had seized power in a February 1 coup.

Detained in Malaysia for immigration offences, they were deported despite a court order halting the plan. Rights groups had told the court that children and asylum seekers fleeing persecution in Myanmar were among those being deported.

Myanmar expatriates living in Malaysia hold signs against the coup during a candlelight vigil in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: EPA

Three Malaysian sources familiar with the matter said the decision to delay a plan to deport a second batch until after a proposed meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to discuss the Myanmar crisis was taken at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday. The sources requested anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to media.

Myanmar this month had offered to send three more navy ships to pick up its people detained in Malaysia, one of the sources said.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry directed queries to the home affairs ministry and immigration department, neither of which responded to requests for comment.

Indonesia last week called on Brunei, the current chair of Asean, to convene an urgent meeting to discuss the situation in Myanmar, amid a violent crackdown on anti-coup protesters. Malaysia backed Indonesia’s call, but it is unclear whether, or when, that meeting would be held.