UNHCR to register asylum seekers from Burma in Malaysia

19 August 2013: UNHCR announced last week that it would make an individual registration of asylum seekers from Burma in Malaysia starting from 2 September 2013.

The program will include registration of 16,000 asylum seekers in areas such as Perak, Cameron Highland, Kuantan, Johor Baru, Saramban and Kuala Lumpur until December this year.

Mr. Ca Thawng, Coordinator of the Chin Refugee Committee (CRC), told Chinland Guardian that the new move by UNHCR was much welcomed.

“We were told the registration would be different from before. It will be just a recording of individual’s details, which is not about getting an opportunity to resettle into other countries.”

Mr. Ca Thawng said: “Those registered this time will have to go through a set of processes including interviews until their cases are successful.”

UNCHR made the announcement on 15 August 2013 by  during a meeting at the Chinese Assembly Hall with leaders of refugee communities from Burma based in Malaysia.

Sources from Chin refugee communities estimate there are over 20,000 Chins who remain unregistered in Malaysia.

Out of some 104,070 refugees and asylum-seekers registered with UNHCR in Malaysia as of May this year, 94,760 are from Burma, with some 32,540 Chins, according to UNHCR’s official website.

As part of UNHCR’s ongoing data-gathering and analysis, UNHCR believes that there are some 49,000 unregistered asylum-seekers, who UNHCR is progressively working to register.#