Malaysia begins deportation of 1,500 Myanmar nationals despite UN safety warnings

Malaysia begins deporting approximately 1,500 Myanmar nationals on September 29, 2026, launching a controversial 5,000-person repatriation program. Despite warnings from the UN and 160 civil society groups about Myanmar's ongoing civil war and conscription risks, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim defends the move, citing rising domestic hostility and economic burdens. The UN refugee agency remains barred from screening the returnees.

Details of the deportation process

• ▪Malaysia began the process of deporting approximately 1,500 Myanmar nationals on Tuesday, 29 September 2026, as the first phase of a broader plan to repatriate 5,000 people
• ▪The deportation process on Tuesday, 29 September 2026, involved transporting Myanmar returnees in buses under police escort to a stadium in Manjung, Perak, before transferring them to naval vessels at Lumut

Warnings and opposition to the deportations

• ▪The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees stated that current volatile conditions in Myanmar do not support the safe and sustainable return of refugees
• ▪Human rights groups and community leaders warn that repatriated Myanmar nationals face severe risks, including forced military conscription or detention upon return to Myanmar
• ▪More than 160 civil society groups issued a joint statement urging the Malaysian government to immediately halt the deportations of 1,500 Myanmar nationals

Anwar Ibrahim's stance on repatriation

• ▪Prime Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced plans to invite Myanmar military leader Min Aung Hlaing to Malaysia to negotiate the return of Myanmar nationals
• ▪Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim defended the repatriation of 5,000 Myanmar nationals, stating that Rohingya refugees have become an economic and security burden on the country

Conditions and access in immigration detention centres

• ▪Malaysia's Home Ministry reported that 10,388 Myanmar nationals were being held at immigration detention depots nationwide as of 15 August 2026
• ▪The Malaysian government has barred the United Nations refugee agency from accessing or screening the 1,476 Myanmar returnees held in detention centres
• ▪Advocacy organizations state that dire conditions inside Malaysian immigration detention centres may have coerced Myanmar nationals into agreeing to the repatriation program returning 5,000 Myanmar nationals to Myanmar

Treatment of refugees

• ▪Malaysia is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and officially treats its estimated 215,600 refugees and asylum seekers as undocumented migrants
• ▪In 2026, Malaysian authorities detained more than 100 Rohingya who had gathered outside the United Nations refugee agency's office in Kuala Lumpur

Public hostility against Rohingya refugees

• ▪A 2026 online petition on Change.org calling for the expulsion of Rohingya from Malaysia received over 400,000 signatures before being removed
• ▪Refugees in Malaysia, particularly Rohingya, face growing public hostility and online disinformation campaigns fueled by concerns over jobs, public services, and security

Debatable claims

• ▪Anwar Ibrahim's plan to negotiate directly with Myanmar's military junta is appropriate
• ▪The repatriation of Myanmar nationals from Malaysian detention centres is genuinely voluntary
• ▪Malaysia should immediately halt the deportation of Myanmar nationals