| Press Release: Allowing Refugees and Asylum Seekers Access to Lawful Employment is a Positive Step in the Right Direction |
| Wednesday, 17 July 2013 03:58pm | |
 The
Malaysian Bar welcomes the statement by the Minister of Home Affairs
Dato’ Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, as reported in the news media,1
that refugees would be trained in order for them to seek employment
whilst they remain in Malaysia awaiting resettlement to a third country
or voluntary repatriation to their country of origin.
For
far too long refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia have been forced
to fend for themselves and to feed their families by working illicitly
and in the shadows, with no legal protection. This has exposed them to
discrimination, exploitation and victimisation. Allowing refugees and
asylum seekers the ability to access lawful employment is a positive
step in the right direction.
Malaysia
is host to a significant refugee population, many of whom are from
Myanmar. According to the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees in Malaysia (“UNHCR Malaysia”)’s
website,2
there were 104,070 refugees and asylum-seekers registered with them as
at the end May 2013. 94,760 persons (91%) originated from Myanmar while
persons from countries such as Sri Lanka, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan
made up the majority of the remaining 9%. UNHCR Malaysia also
estimates that there are a further 49,000 unregistered asylum seekers in
Malaysia.
Unlike
economic migrants, refugees and asylum seekers are victims of
persecution who are compelled to abandon everything at home, and flee to
foreign shores to seek safety and refuge.
However,
Malaysian law does not expressly recognise the concept of refugees or
asylum seekers and they are often treated under our laws as “illegal
immigrants”. They are thus vulnerable to arrest, detention,
imprisonment, whipping and deportation. Our laws are not properly
geared to accord them due recognition, care and protection.
Due
to the uncertainty of their status in Malaysia and restrictions in
seeking lawful employment, refugees and asylum seekers are often forced
to take up unofficial employment to support themselves and their
families, usually on a casual basis without any employment contract or
agreement. This has made them vulnerable to exploitation in the form of
non-payment of wages, long working hours and dangerous working
conditions. They are also at risk of harassment, extortion and ill
treatment by enforcement officers and members of the public at their
work place, during their travel to and from work, and even in and around
their place of residence. As a result, they live in a climate of fear
and insecurity.
We
are hopeful that this change in policy by the Malaysian Government will
lead to an overall improvement in the outlook for refugees and asylum
seekers. The Malaysian Government should ensure that a proper
recruitment and monitoring system under the Ministry of Human Resources
is put in place to ensure that refugees and asylum seekers are accorded
the basic labour rights of a decent wage, fair working hours, off-days,
medical benefits, and workplace health and safety protection, and are
not exploited or trafficked in any way.
On
a wider perspective, the Malaysian Bar urges the Malaysian Government
to put in place a suitable legal and administrative framework for
dealing with refugees and asylum seekers in a holistic, humane and
appropriate manner, and to work closely with stakeholders such as UNHCR
Malaysia, civil society organisations and the Bar.
In
this regard, the Malaysian Bar invites the Malaysian Government to look
at and implement the detailed short-term, medium-term and long-term
measures and recommendations contained in a proposal entitled
“Developing a Comprehensive Policy Framework for Refugees and Asylum
Seekers”, which was jointly submitted to it by UNHCR Malaysia and the
Malaysian Bar.
It
is also high time Malaysia ratifies the 1951 Refugee Convention and the
1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, both of which are
instruments encapsulating customary international law in relation to the
recognition of the socio-economic rights of refugees and the provision
of humanitarian assistance and social integration for them.
Christopher Leong
President
Malaysian Bar
17 July 2013
1 “
Plan to let refugees get jobs”, The Star, 12 July 2013. |
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