A people fleeing persecution

KUALA LUMPUR: Although not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention, Muslim-majority Malaysia has been hosting a large number of Muslim Rohingya, who are shunned and persecuted in Buddhistmajority Myanmar.

Here are some facts about refugees in Malaysia and the Rohingya:

As of the end of June, there are 150 700 refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia, south-east Asia’s third-largest economy with a population of 30 million.

About 90% of the country’s refugees and asylum seekers are from Myanmar. Topping the list are 53 140 Rohingya, followed by ethnic Chin from the country, Myanmar Muslims, Rakhines and other ethnicities.

The remaining refugees and asylum seekers are from Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestinian territories.

Sectarian violence between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State in 2012 displaced about 145 000 people and about 20 000 homes were destroyed. An estimated 1 million Rohingya live in Rakhine.

Worsening violence sparked an exodus by boat. About 25 000 Rohingya and economic migrants from Bangladesh boarded smugglers’ boats between January and March last year, almost double the number over the same period in 2014.

An estimated 300 people died at sea during this period as a result of starvation, dehydration and abuse by boat crews.

Thousands of Rohingya and Bangladeshis were left stranded in the sea for weeks in May last year after Thai authorities cracked down on a popular smuggling route, sparking the Asian migrant crisis. – Reuters