PARIT BUNTAR: Detainees at immigration depots nationwide will be registered as part of efforts to establish a national refugee database managed directly by Malaysia, says Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (pic).
The Home Minister said the move is part of the government’s Refugee Registration Document (DPP) initiative.
Currently, there are about 21,000 detainees at immigration depots nationwide, of whom around 4,000 have claimed refugee status, he said.
“At present, refugee management in Malaysia falls under the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Kuala Lumpur.
“They are responsible for registration, verification, the issuance of refugee cards and related processes.
“Are we fully satisfied with this arrangement? Not entirely.
“That is why the government is introducing a second approach, whereby the government itself will undertake the refugee registration process,” he told reporters after officiating the Malaysian Prisons Department’s Kampung Angkat Madani and Sekolah Angkat Madani corrective community programme here yesterday.
Saifuddin Nasution noted that a decision on whether an individual qualifies as a genuine refugee would only be made after a comprehensive verification process.
This would involve security screening by the Immigration Department, the police and other relevant agencies, Bernama reported him as saying.
“At present, the figures we rely on come from the UNHCR, which estimates there are between 190,000 and 200,000 refugees and asylum seekers in the country,” said Saifuddin Nasution.
“However, once the government conducts the registration process, we will have comprehensive data, including names, addresses, ages, genders, skills and biometric information such as facial and iris recognition.”
Saifuddin Nasution emphasised that possession of the DPP would not change the existing long-term solutions for refugees, namely resettlement in a third country or repatriation to their country of origin once conditions there are peaceful and safe.
