Malaysia Starts Sending Myanmar Nationals Home as Rohingya Hostility Persists

Malaysia has started sending Myanmar nationals back to their home country, according to reports from The Straits Times, CNA, the BBC, The Economist and the South China Morning Post. The deportations mark the beginning of a repatriation process that has drawn controversy because Myanmar remains in the grip of conflict. The Straits Times reports that while the returns have now begun, hostility toward Rohingya refugees in Malaysia is not expected to subside any time soon. The Economist and the BBC both describe the repatriation as contentious, while the South China Morning Post reports that thousands of Myanmar nationals are being sent back to a war-torn homeland. The coverage points to a gap between the mechanics of deportation and the wider climate facing Rohingya refugees in the country. According to The Straits Times, the antagonism they encounter is set to continue regardless of the returns now under way. Malaysia is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention, a point relevant to how asylum seekers are treated there, though the source material does not elaborate on this. What the reports do make clear is that the movement of people has started and that it involves large numbers, with the South China Morning Post putting the figure in the thousands.  The reporting also indicates that the destinations are areas still affected by fighting, which is central to why the process has been criticised by several outlets. What to watch next: whether the deportations continue at the same pace and how the treatment of Rohingya refugees in Malaysia develops in the weeks ahead.