‘Malaysia can’t take any more Rohingyas’

Malaysia Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said his country cannot take any more Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.

“We can no longer take more as our resources and capacity are already stretched, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

Muhyiddin said this in a teleconference with other leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes Myanmar.

“Yet, Malaysia is unfairly expected to do more to accommodate incoming refugees,” he added.

Malaysia, one of Muslim-majority countries in the world, is a favoured destination for Rohingya people for long years. They started to flee to the Malaysia refugee camps in Bangladesh, seeking a better life after a 2017 military-led crackdown in Myanmar.

But Malaysia, which does not recognise refugee status, has recently turned away boats and detained hundreds of Rohingya, amid rising anger towards foreigners who have been accused of spreading the coronavirus and taking up scarce state funds.


Dhaka/AKA