Chin community gets to voice concerns at town hall session

By MARIYAH SHAHRIN newsdesk@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: The ethnic

Chin community from Myanmar, which faces losing refugee protection next year, will have a chance to voice its concerns at the Refugees No

More screening and town hall session today.

Organised by The Star’s

R.AGE team, the event will take place at Methodist College

Kuala Lumpur at 4pm.

Panellists will include UN

High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR) representative for Malaysia Richard Towle, Alliance of Chin Refugees chairman Mung Khat, Refuge For The Refugees founder and director Heidy Quah and Immigration enforcement director Saravana Kumar Marimuthu.

R.AGE deputy executive editor and producer Ian Yee said the event aims to facilitate a new conversation between the relevant stakeholders and the Chin community.

“We understand the position of the government and UNHCR, and the complexities of the refugee situation,” said Yee.

“But when there are reports of people driven to suicide, the very least we can do is have a conversation with the affected community,” he added.

An exclusive report by R.AGE on Oct 19 (rage.my/refugeesnomore) revealed a sharp increase in depression and those thinking about suicide among the Chin community since it was announced that their refugee protections will end.

UNHCR had sent a letter to the Chin community on June 13 announcing the new policy.

In the announcement, Chin refugees who renew their UNHCR cards after Aug 1 would be given an option to either extend their existing cards until Dec 31, 2019, after which their individual refugee status will automatically cease, or go through an interview to determine if they still need refugee protection.

If they do not pass the interview, their UNHCR card will automatically cease and not be extended, meaning they will be viewed as undocumented immigrants with no legal protection.

According to a response by UNHCR, over 30,000 Chin refugees and asylum seekers are having their UNHCR protection status reviewed to assess whether they still need their mandated support.

Find out more about the Refugees No More project by R.AGE at rage.my/refugeesnomore.