UN special rapporteur urges Malaysia to halt repatriation of Myanmar nationals

A UN special rapporteur on Thursday urged Malaysia to halt the ongoing repatriation of Myanmar nationals, warning that returning them amid continuing conflict could violate the principle of non-refoulement.

"I am gravely concerned the Government of Malaysia has begun to return 5,000 Myanmar nationals, including women and children, under a so-called 'voluntary repatriation programme' agreed with the military authorities in Myanmar," Kelley Currie, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said in a statement.

Malaysia began repatriating the first group of 1,476 people on Sept. 29, according to the statement.

Currie said the risk of refoulement under current circumstances was "substantial," stressing that conditions for a "safe, dignified, sustainable, and genuinely voluntary" return were not in place.

She pointed to ongoing armed conflict and widespread violence in Rakhine State, including violations against the Rohingya population.

Currie also condemned a Sept. 28 airstrike by Myanmar's military on a crowded marketplace in Pike Thae village, Kyauktaw Township in Rakhine, which reportedly killed more than 50 civilians and injured many others.

She urged Malaysia to take note of the legal, humanitarian and practical criteria required for voluntary repatriation and ensure that the human rights of all Myanmar refugees in Malaysia are protected.