In a statement, Bar Council president AG Kalidas urged Putrajaya to do so by ratifying the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, both of which are instruments of international law that recognise the rights of refugees and asylum seekers.
“Refugees and asylum seekers are people too, and deserve to be afforded dignity, kindness and respect.
“It is disheartening to see that the government still does not expressly recognise the concept of refugees or asylum seekers.”
Kalidas noted that these groups often had to operate under the radar to avoid enforcement authorities and were vulnerable to arrest, detention and deportation.
On vaccinations, he said the Bar Council was committed to working with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to find holistic and comprehensive solutions to ensure migrants can be vaccinated through the government’s immunisation programme.
“Many refugees and asylum seekers have yet to be vaccinated, putting them at a heightened risk of contracting the virus due to their living conditions,” he said.
The issue of migrant vaccinations has come under the microscope recently, with the home ministry ramping up enforcement activities during the full lockdown, which rights groups said would only dissuade these groups from coming forward to be immunised.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian Advisory Group on Myanmar said refugee and undocumented migrant protection was essential in the war against Covid-19, otherwise it would hamper the country’s recovery and endanger Malaysians as well.
According to Bernama, the group said any hardline approach adopted by the authorities would simply push refugees and undocumented migrants further into hiding and discourage them from coming forward to be tested and vaccinated, essential steps in curbing community infections.
“We urge the government and the people of Malaysia to lead by example, protect the refugees among us to ensure that their basic rights and needs are met, especially during this difficult time of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the group said in a statement.
The group referred to home minister Hamzah Zainudin’s stance against undocumented migrants, saying that it was concerned by his suggestion that refugee camps be set up to manage their population in the country.
“Building camps would not only perpetuate trauma and dependency, but would also be an enormous drain on public resources and cut the refugees off from the rest of society,” the group said.
The Malaysian Advisory Group on Myanmar is an independent council, consisting of distinguished, knowledgeable and concerned persons from Malaysia’s public and private sectors.