UNHCR Says It Is Not Involved in Malaysia's Planned Repatriation of 1,476 Myanmar Refugees

September 3, 2026 at 11:05 AM2 min

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The UN refugee agency says it is not involved in Malaysia's planned repatriation of 1,476 Myanmar nationals scheduled for September 29. UNHCR told Reuters that ongoing conflict and repression in Myanmar make it difficult to guarantee their safe return. Rights groups warn the returnees face high risk of torture, mistreatment, and forced conscription.

Key Facts

Malaysia's Ministry of Home Affairs announced the repatriation of 1,476 Myanmar nationals on September 29 aboard two Myanmar Navy warships and a hospital ship.
The repatriation is the first phase of a voluntary program involving around 5,000 refugees, about half of the 10,388 Myanmar nationals held in immigration detention depots.
UNHCR told Reuters on Tuesday that it was not involved in the scheduled repatriation and that conditions in Myanmar were not in place for safe return.
Deputy Foreign Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni announced in July that around 5,000 Myanmar nationals would be repatriated as soon as Myanmar is ready to accept them.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said last month that Malaysia would not return them if they would be persecuted or their lives threatened.

Repatriation Plan

Malaysia's Ministry of Home Affairs announced last week that it would repatriate 1,476 Myanmar nationals on September 29 aboard two Myanmar Navy warships and a hospital ship. The plan is the first phase of a voluntary repatriation program involving around 5,000 refugees, approximately half of the 10,388 Myanmar nationals currently held at immigration detention depots. Deputy Foreign Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni announced in July that around 5,000 Myanmar nationals in the immigration detention system would be repatriated as soon as Myanmar is ready to accept them. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim later confirmed this figure.

UNHCR Position

The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) told Reuters on Tuesday that it was not involved in the scheduled repatriation. UNHCR stated that ongoing conflict and repression made it difficult to guarantee the safe return of the refugees. The agency cited customary international law, saying no one should be sent to a country where their rights or freedoms may be at risk. UNHCR urged careful consideration of protection needs before return and said it stands ready to engage with relevant authorities on protection safeguards.

Rights Concerns

Refugee and human rights advocates say the 1,476 people will likely be vulnerable to persecution, armed conflict, forced recruitment, torture, and other serious human rights violations once back in Myanmar. Yap Lay Sheng of the advocacy group Fortify Rights said Malaysia should not forcibly send anyone back to a country where they face persecution, torture, and serious harm. The Ministry did not disclose the ethnicities of the group, but many are likely Rohingya Muslims from Rakhine State. More than 740,000 Rohingya fled Rakhine State to Bangladesh in 2017 following an ethnic cleansing campaign by the Myanmar military.