Stop deportation of 19 Sri Lankan refugees and asylum seekers

(January 06, Selangor -Malaysia., Sri Lanka Guardian) SUARAM has been informed that the actual number of Sri Lankan asylum seekers at risk of deportation by the Malaysian Government is 19 individuals. They are scheduled to be deported on 7 and 8 January 2010 and are currently located at KLIA Immigration Detention Centre.

In addition, we were also informed that the 19 have been registered by UNHCR during detention at Machap Umboo Immigration Detention Centre, Malacca. It is most likely that their asylum claims are still being processed by UNHCR

Despite registration by UNHCR, the move to deport the asylum seekers is symptomatic of the utter lack of respect of basic refugee rights by the Malaysian Government.

Once again, SUARAM demands that Malaysian Government fully respects the international customary law of non-refoulement, which prohibits the return of people to places where they may face persecution or threats to their life or freedoms. Protection from refoulement is a basic right of asylum seekers and refugees. We would like to remind the Malaysian Government that asylum seekers and refugees may be repatriated to their country of origin only if it is on a voluntary basis.

We demand that the deportation is halted immediately and for UNHCR to be given immediate access to the asylum seekers and refugees while their asylum claims are being processed.

We also call upon the Malaysian Government to ensure that that all law enforcement agencies (in particular RELA, Police and Immigration) respect UNHCR documents and refrain from arresting holders of these documents.

Background

The 19 Sri Lankan asylum seekers were transferred from Machap Umboo Immigration Detention Centre to KLIA Immigration Detention Centre on 5 January 2010.

Individuals from the group have expressed that they do not want to go back to Sri Lanka, making this a forced repatriation exercise. Asylum seekers and refugees can only be repatriated to their country of origin only if it is voluntary.

Although the civil war in Sri Lanka ended in May 2009, more that 200,000 Sri Lankan Tamils are currently confined in internment camps where conditions are extremely poor and show little signs of improvement. Sri Lankan asylum seekers and refugees currently living in Malaysia cannot be forced to return to uncertain conditions of living where they might have to live in camps or where they might be subject to persecution.

Released by
Temme Lee
Coordinator
Urgent action needed:

Please write protest letters to the government and the police to express your strongest condemnation of the mistreatment of refugees. Please also demand the Malaysian Government to stop the repatriation of Sri Lankan refugees.

Please call and send your protest letters to:

Shainurin Bin Shaari
Timbalan Penolong Pengarah Imigresen
Depot Tahanan Imigresen KLIA
Jalan Pekeliling 4
64050 Sepang
Kuala Lumpur
Tel : +603-87766867
Fax : +603-87766913

Dato' Abdul Rahman bin Othman
Director-General of Immigration Department,
Director-General’s Office,
Immigration Department of Malaysia Headquarters,
Level 7 (Podium),
No 15, Persiaran Perdana, Presint 2,
62550 Putrajaya,
Malaysia
Tel: +603-88801005
Fax: +603-88801201
E-Mail: kpi@imi.gov.my

Y.B. Dato' Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein
Home Minister
Ministry of Home Affairs
Blok D1 & D2, Kompleks D
Pusat Pentadbiran
Kerajaan Persekutuan
62546 Putrajaya
Tel : +603-8886 8000
Fax : +603-88884913
Email: hishammuddin@moha.gov.my / menteri@moha.gov.my

Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak
Prime Minister of Malaysia,
Prime Minister's Office,
Main Block, Perdana Putra Building ,
Federal Government Administrative Centre,
62502 Putrajaya , MALAYSIA
Tel : +603-8888 8000
Fax : +603-8888 3444
E-Mail: ppm@pmo.gov.my


SAMPLE LETTER

[Letterhead of your organisation]

Dato' Abdul Rahman bin Othman
Director-General of Immigration Department,
Director-General’s Office,
Immigration Department of Malaysia Headquarters,
Level 7 (Podium),
No 15, Persiaran Perdana, Presint 2,
62550 Putrajaya,
Malaysia
Tel: +603-88801005
Fax: +603-88801201
E-Mail: kpi@imi.gov.my

Dear Sir,

RE: Stop the Repatriation of the Sri Lankan Refugees Now

We are writing to you to express our outrage and our strongest condemnation over your government's treatment of Sri Lankan refugees in Malaysia.

We are appalled by your government and the Immigration Department’s latest move to allow the deportation of Sri Lankan asylum seekers and refugees. This is an outright violation of the right to seek asylum as enshrined under Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This is also an outright violation of the international customary law of non-refoulement, which prohibits the return of people to places where they may face persecution or threats to their life or freedoms.

We demand that the 19 Sri Lankan refugees detained at KLIA Immigration Detention Centre are released immediately into the custody of UNHCR. We demand that UNHCR is given immediate and free access to register those who have yet to access UNHCR.

We demand that the Malaysian Government take measures to protect the rights of refugees and asylum seekers who are currently in Malaysia and fully respect the principle of non-refoulement, as recommended by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), two UN Conventions of which Malaysia is party to.

We strongly urge you, once again, to stop bringing shame to Malaysia and to ratify 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol.

Yours sincerely,