Tue 23 June 2020:
Medicins sans Frontiers (MSF) says reports Malaysia plans to send some 269 Rohingya people back to sea on the boat they arrived on was “concerning”.
Beatrice Lau, who is the organisation’s head of mission in Malaysia, says returning the Rohingya was a violation of the customary international law principle of non-refoulement, and could lead to many more deaths.
“MSF calls on the Malaysian government to reconsider its plans to deport people who are so clearly in need of protection and safety,” she said in a statement.
Malaysia, which has stepped up border patrols because of the coronavirus, detained the Rohingya on June 8 after their boat was discovered off the resort island of Langkawi. Lau noted that the Rohingya no longer posed a COVID-19 risk as they had already been quarantined and tested. MSF was willing to provide medical assistance, she added.
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