Malaysia arrests nearly 200 undocumented Myanmar nationals

Malaysian police arrested nearly 200 undocumented Myanmar migrants early on January 3, the Malaysian Coast Guard said.

Malaysia's coast guard said on Tuesday it has doubled its patrols in the country's waters to locate boats carrying undocumented Myanmar migrants, Reuters reported.

Earlier, Malaysian police arrested 196 undocumented Myanmar migrants early this morning, January 3, after their boat landed on a beach on the resort island of Langkawi in Malaysia's Kedah state, according to Reuters.

Immigration officials inspect a riverside area near an immigration detention center in the Malaysian town of Bidor on February 2, 2024.

"Based on information received by the coast guard, there are two more boats carrying undocumented Myanmar migrants at sea but their exact location is still unknown," the Malaysian Coast Guard said in a statement.

Malaysian Coast Guard chief Mohd Rosli Abdullah added that authorities were patrolling the northern waters off Langkawi and border areas, and had arranged for aerial surveillance to locate the boats.

The Malaysian coast guard is also in contact with Thai authorities to determine the route of the boats carrying the Myanmar migrants, according to Mohd Rosli.

Earlier in the day, Malaysia's The Star newspaper reported that about 200 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar had landed in Langkawi. The Rohingya are a predominantly Muslim minority in Myanmar.

The Malaysian coast guard did not specify whether the detained migrants were Rohingya.

About 1 million Rohingya have fled, mostly to neighboring Bangladesh, to escape a military offensive launched by Myanmar in August 2017, a campaign that United Nations investigators have described as a classic example of ethnic cleansing, according to Reuters. Myanmar's military government has denied the allegations.

Malaysia has long been a popular destination for Rohingya fleeing Myanmar or refugee camps in Bangladesh.

However, in recent years, Malaysia has refused to accept boats carrying Rohingya refugees and has rounded up thousands in crowded detention centres as part of a campaign against undocumented migrants.

From 2010-2024, Malaysian authorities arrested 2,089 undocumented Myanmar migrants attempting to enter the country by sea, according to the Malaysian Coast Guard.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/malaysia-bat-giu-gan-200-nguoi-myanmar-khong-co-giay-to-185250103193436029.htm