MALAYSIA'S HOME AFFAIRS MINISTER CRITICIZES UNHCR,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KUALA LUMPUR 000268

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/12/2017
TAGS: PHUM PREF SMIG PREL PGOV UNHCR MY
SUBJECT: MALAYSIA'S HOME AFFAIRS MINISTER CRITICIZES UNHCR,
GRUMBLES ABOUT REFUGEES

REF: A. 06 KUALA LUMPUR 2137


B. 06 KUALA LUMPUR 1162

C. 06 KUALA LUMPUR 1143

D. 06 KUALA LUMPUR 246

E. 05 KUALA LUMPUR 3691

Classified By: DCM David B. Shear for reasons 1.4 b and d.

Summary
--------------


1. (C) Home Affairs Minister Radzi Sheikh Ahmad recently
launched a salvo of criticism at the local UNHCR office,
threatening a crackdown on refugees and highlighting the
UNHCR's difficult status in a country that has yet to sign
the UN Convention on Refugees. The UNHCR appears to be
weathering the storm: the Foreign Affairs Ministry remains
supportive of the UNHCR's presence, and working level Home
Affairs Ministry officials have indicated that the ministry
will continue to work with the UN agency. Radzi, apparently
under political pressure to take increased action against
illegal migrants in Malaysia, publicly criticized the UNHCR's
activities, following UNHCR efforts to obtain the release of
45 UNHCR "persons of concern" detained by immigration
authorities during a January 28 raid. The Home Affairs
Minister announced that his ministry would prepare new
(presumably stricter) guidelines for immigration officials in
dealing with UNHCR-recognized refugees. On January 30, the
UNHCR Representative here was summoned to the Foreign Affairs
Ministry and told the UNHCR's activities in Malaysia have
also been privately denounced within the GOM by the Minister.
Shortly thereafter, the government requested that the UNHCR
move its current operations compound to a new location "for
security reasons." We contacted senior officials in both the
Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs ministries, in order to
express our full support for the UNHCR's activities and to
remind the government of our substantial efforts - together
with the UNCHR - to resettle thousands of Burmese Chin
refugees this year (and beyond) from Malaysia to the United
States. This latest round of anti-UNHCR commentary has been
higher-level and more public than usual. While the latest
Home Affairs Ministry disgruntlement may presage somewhat
tighter government policies toward the UNHCR and the
approximately 46,000 refugees living in Malaysia, we foresee
continued (albeit more forced than usual) cooperation between
the UNHCR and the ministry. We also note that the Foreign
Affairs Ministry has privately assured us that the GOM will
continue to work with the UNHCR on a constructive basis. End
Summary.

Jungle Camp Raid Illuminates Tensions
--------------


2. (C) A day after the January 27 broadcast of a news report
on government-controlled TV3, in which a landowner complained
of refugees building a Christian chapel and illegally
squatting in an encampment on his land, government officials
raided the camp, arrested 173 Burmese Chin refugees, and
burned down the chapel and temporary lodgings that contained
the refugees' meager belongings. We had visited the camp
during November 2006 when it sheltered approximately 100
refugees (ref A). A senior UNHCR official told us that 80
refugees escaped arrest when they fled into the jungle.
Approximately 50 of these individuals were not yet registered
with the UNHCR. They were subsequently located by ACTS (A
Call to Serve; a local NGO partially funded by the USG),
bussed to the UNHCR compound, and registered. The UNHCR
official told us that approximately 4 immigration officers
and 15 RELA (People's Volunteer Corps) members conducted the
raid. (Note: RELA is comprised of 340,000 baton-wielding,
uniformed citizens who act as an auxiliary police force.
They are used by the government to help keep public order and
detain illegal immigrants. The government pays RELA members
RM80, or $23, for each illegal migrant they hand over to the
immigration department. RELA's membership far exceeds the
combined 200,000 personnel in Malaysia's police and military
forces. End note.)


3. (C) Within hours of the raid, on-site government
authorities invited the UNHCR to secure the release of those
individuals identified as UNHCR persons of concern. While
the raiding officers were prepared to release these 45
individuals, immigration department headquarters officials
intervened and ordered that all detainees be brought to a
nearby illegal migrant detention center. The UNHCR has thus
far been unable to secure their release. This purposeful
detention of UNHCR-recognized refugees marked a significant
departure from the Home Affairs Ministry's previous policy
and practice. Until lately, under a gentleman's agreement
between the UNHCR and the Home Affairs Ministry,
UNHCR-documented refugees were either not detained during

KUALA LUMP 00000268 002 OF 003


raids, or were quickly released from detention following
UNHCR confirmation of the refugees' documentation. UNHCR
officials privately told us that the purposeful detention of
UNHCR-recognized refugees following the January 28 raid
reflected "deteriorating respect" for the gentleman's
agreement.

Home Affairs Lashes Out, But MFA Defends UNHCR
-------------- -


4. (C) On January 30, the UNHCR Representative, Volker Turk,
was summoned to a meeting with the MFA's Deputy Secretary
General, Tan Seng Sung. According to Turk, Foreign Minister
Syed Hamid requested Tan to prepare "a briefing on UNHCR's
role, and the refugee situation in the country," and this
prompted Tan to request the meeting with Turk. The UNHCR
subsequently provided us with a copy of the briefing
materials given to Deputy SecGen Tan. The documents aptly
and succinctly describe UNHCR's essential role and activities
on behalf of refugees in Malaysia. Tan said the FM would use
the briefing materials to help defend the UNHCR's activities
in Malaysia. Despite this reassurance, Tan emphasized that
Malaysia did not sign the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and
generally considers refugees as "illegal migrants who should
be deported." Tan said the UNHCR's activities created an
unappealing "pull factor" that draws increasing numbers of
illegal migrants from Burma to Malaysia.


5. (C) The GOM's public criticism of the UNHCR reached a
crescendo on January 31, when Home Affairs Minister Radzi
Sheikh Ahmad said to reporters, "We accept the UNHCR's
presence (in Malaysia),but we don't recognize their powers.
We do not accept UNHCR-hosted refugees." During his comments
to local media, Radzi also said the UNHCR "really gets in the
way" of the work of RELA and immigration officials. The next
day, Radzi publicly announced that his ministry would suggest
revised guidelines to the cabinet, in an attempt to provide
"clearer guidance" to RELA and immigration officials on
handling refugees who hold UNHCR documentation. No further
information about the revised guidelines has thus far
emerged. In contrast to Turk's regular meetings with the
former Home Affairs Minister, Turk told us Radzi refuses to
meet with any UNHCR officials. As both RELA and the
immigration department fall under the Home Affairs Ministry,
the Minister's publicly and privately expressed antagonism
has negatively affected day-to-day cooperation between the
immigration department and UNHCR officials, according to the
UNHCR.

Embassy Expresses Strong Support for UNHCR
--------------


6. (C) Embassy DCM David Shear called the MFA on February 5
to express our full support for UNHCR's operations in
Malaysia. During his conversation with Shahrul Ikhram,
Undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs, the DCM urged the
GOM to continue its cooperation with the UNHCR. The DCM also
reminded Ikhram that, in close cooperation with the UNHCR, we
recently started processing thousands of Burmese Chin
refugees for resettlement from Malaysia to the United States.
Ikhram responded that the GOM would "of course" continue its
cooperation with the UNHCR.


7. (C) Embassy Consul General called on the Home Affairs
Ministry's Deputy SecGen, Raja Azahar bin Raja Abdul Manap on
February 6 and raised the UNHCR issue, along with U.S. plans
to process and resettle thousands of Chin refugees this year.
Raja Azahar was impressed by the U.S. commitment to take in
so many Chins. He noted that the Minister was under a good
deal of pressure from locals to do something about refugee
camps, particularly those located on private land. He stated
that the GOM would like to establish a "government liaison
officer" to interact with the UNHCR on a full-time basis.
The concept will reportedly be discussed during a future
cabinet meeting. In addition, Raja stated that his ministry
would soon attempt to move approximately 150 refugee women
into government-run shelters. We so far have been unable to
confirm this movement. (Comment: The GOM has very limited
shelter space and in the past has been unwilling to identify
refugee women as anything other than illegal migrants
deserving punishment and deportation under Malaysian law.
End comment.)


8. (SBU) The Bar Council and several NGO leaders expressed
their strong support for the UNHCR's work in Malaysia. Bar
Council President Yeo Yang Poh publicly urged the GOM to
"fully appreciate the indispensable functions of the UNHCR
and grant them the fullest cooperation." The WAO (Women's
Aid Organization) described how the UNHCR has facilitated its
efforts to counsel and assist refugee women who have
experienced sexual violence either in their home countries or

KUALA LUMP 00000268 003 OF 003


in Malaysia. Of note, Radzi's criticisms of the UNHCR have
not found support in public comments by other senior GOM
officials or public interest groups.

GOM Wants to Relocate UNHCR Compound
--------------


9. (C) According to Turk, the MFA's Chief of Protocol
notified him on January 30 that the PM's office decided in
July 2006 to relocate the UNHCR's compound for "security
reasons." According to the MFA, the PM's office complained
of refugees "jumping fences" into the King's palace grounds
that lie adjacent to the UNHCR. Despite Turk's protest that
no such security incident occurred during at least the past
two years, Turk said the GOM wants the UNHCR to move to new
premises near the Parliament building near downtown Kuala
Lumpur. The proposed location reportedly consists of two old
bungalows sitting on 1.3 hectares of land. Turk said he
would inspect the new location the week of February 12, but
he wanted to delay or cancel the relocation, as the UNHCR
operates efficiently in its current location. The UNHCR does
not wish to disrupt its operations, especially considering
the large ramp-up underway from our processing of Chins for
resettlement into the United States. Turk was unsure whether
the potential relocation was related to either Radzi's
comments or the revised refugee processing guidelines under
preparation at the Home Affairs Ministry.

Comment
--------------


10. (C) Since 1975, when the UNHCR was invited into Malaysia
by the GOM, the UNHCR has operated as quietly as possible to
register and protect refugees here. The scope, nature and
effectiveness of its operations have been hampered by the
GOM's refusal to sign the 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees,
as well as local communities' resentment and frequent
government raids against refugee groups. Despite these
obstacles, the current UNHCR Representative built a modus
vivendi with key GOM officials, including the previous Home
Affairs Minister. The UNHCR has also provided assistance to
the GOM on several sensitive refugee-related matters,
including the status determination of 131 Thai citizens who
illegally entered Malaysia in August 2005; they claimed to
have fled the ethnic and religious violence in Southern
Thailand (refs B, C, D and E). The new Home Affairs
Minister's recent comments and actions threaten to upset this
precarious balance, a risk apparently recognized by the
Foreign Ministry.


11. (C) Given his control over RELA and the immigration
department, and considering his position as Secretary General
of UMNO (the SecGen is UMNO's 6th highest official),Radzi
ranks as a powerful cabinet member. Therefore, while the MFA
may battle Radzi's anti-UNHCR efforts, the Home Affairs
Ministry's desires will receive a full hearing in the
cabinet. Even if GOM's guidelines on handling
UNHCR-recognized refugees do not materially change as a
result of Radzi's latest efforts, we could see more
anti-refugee, anti-UNHCR efforts by the Home Affairs
Ministry. However, while we think the GOM will likely
consider Radzi's comments and guidelines, we belive the GOM
will not approve drastic changes to the status quo (such as
forced UNHCR staffing reductions, reduced outreach activities
and reduced registrations). The GOM strongly protects
Malaysia's multi-racial, tolerant image, and a major move
against refugees and the UNHCR would generate negative
publicity with minimal countervailing benefit. We therefore
foresee continued - if somewhat more strained - cooperation
between the UNHCR and Home Affairs Ministry officials.
LAFLEUR