Malaysia
03.10.03
Urgent Interventions
Malaysia - Press release: several hundred Acehnese asylum seekers being forcibly deported by sea to Indonesia
PRESS RELEASE
Geneva, October 3rd, 2003
Malaysia: The Ship of Shame
Several hundred Acehnese asylum seekers being forcibly deported by sea to Indonesia
The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), the world’s largest coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) engaged in the fight against torture, would like to express its deep concern about the forced deportation of an estimated 402 Acehnese asylum seekers from Malaysia to Belawan, North Sumatra, Indonesia, aboard a ship which left during the afternoon of Thursday 2nd, 2003.
Malaysia, reportedly considers the Acehnese persons that have arrived in the country in recent weeks to be employment seekers, not refugees or asylum seekers, despite the ongoing conflict in the Indonesian province, which is accompanied by an escalating humanitarian crisis. The Malaysian Foreign Ministry refused the establishment of a moratorium on deportations that had been sought by United Nations Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers, following the arrest of 250 asylum seekers near the UNHCR’s offices in Kuala Lumpur in early September 2003. At least 70 of these persons have already been deported, according to reports. Malaysia has received stern criticism from the international community for its failure to protect these persons (see OMCT’s September 10th, 2003, press release concerning the forced return and arrests of asylum seekers from Aceh province).
Our sources report that on Tuesday September 16th, 2003, the Malaysian police raided the Limau Manis camp, Putra Jaya, where as many as 2,000 Acehnese persons who had fled the conflict, including some 500 women and children and a considerable proportion of ill or infirm persons, have been living in a temporary settlement. Up to six police trucks were used to transport at least 200 detainees (now thought to number over 400 detainees) away following the operation. It is reported that four men may have drowned in a nearby river while trying to escape arrest during this raid.
On October 2nd, 20 busses filled with detained immigrants, including an estimated 402 Acehnese asylum seekers who were arrested at the Limau Manis camp, were loaded onto Indonesian ship KM Taruna Sakti at Port Klang. The ship departed during the afternoon for Belawan, North Sumatra, but its final destination remains unknown. The 402 asylum seekers were reportedly threatened that if they did not go peacefully, they would be “forced violently” to do so. Our sources indicate that they have not as yet seen these asylum seekers in the port of Belawan.
Of further concern is the risk of further arrests and deportation of Acehnese asylum seekers remaining in camps in Malaysia, besides which, a lack of sanitation and medicine in these camps is contributing to the alarming spread of disease, notably Malaria.
OMCT vigorously condemns the forced deportation of Acehnese asylum seekers back to Indonesia, and potentially Aceh, where they face grave risks to their safety and personal integrity due to the ongoing conflict and prevalent humanitarian crisis. OMCT calls upon the Malaysian authorities to immediately launch a moratorium on deportations, as sought by the UNHCR, and to intervene in order to improve the humanitarian situation of the refugee camps within its territory. OMCT deems that States have an obligation not to expel or return a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he/she would be in danger of being subjected to serious violations of his/her personal integrity, including torture and extrajudicial execution.
Concerning the situation in Aceh
Reports indicate that between 200 and 1000 civilians have died as a result of the new phase of the 26-year old conflict in the Indonesian province of Aceh, which began on May 18th, 2003, when Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri declared a state of emergency and imposed martial law in the province. This included closing the Acehnese borders off to all foreign media and humanitarian organisations, and an augmentation of the military and police presence to some 40’000 to 50’000 men, who are now reportedly engaged in committing widespread human rights violations against civilians and members of the nascent and fragile civil society in the country. An estimated 40’000 civilians, mainly thought to be women and children, are reportedly displaced in Aceh, and are without sufficient food, water and medicine, in what can only be described as a serious humanitarian crisis. There are also reports surfacing of the discovery of at least one mass grave in the province.
For further information, please contact: Michael Anthony - tel: + 41 22 809 49 39, e-mail: ma@omct.org
Geneva, October 3rd, 2003
Malaysia: The Ship of Shame
Several hundred Acehnese asylum seekers being forcibly deported by sea to Indonesia
The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), the world’s largest coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) engaged in the fight against torture, would like to express its deep concern about the forced deportation of an estimated 402 Acehnese asylum seekers from Malaysia to Belawan, North Sumatra, Indonesia, aboard a ship which left during the afternoon of Thursday 2nd, 2003.
Malaysia, reportedly considers the Acehnese persons that have arrived in the country in recent weeks to be employment seekers, not refugees or asylum seekers, despite the ongoing conflict in the Indonesian province, which is accompanied by an escalating humanitarian crisis. The Malaysian Foreign Ministry refused the establishment of a moratorium on deportations that had been sought by United Nations Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers, following the arrest of 250 asylum seekers near the UNHCR’s offices in Kuala Lumpur in early September 2003. At least 70 of these persons have already been deported, according to reports. Malaysia has received stern criticism from the international community for its failure to protect these persons (see OMCT’s September 10th, 2003, press release concerning the forced return and arrests of asylum seekers from Aceh province).
Our sources report that on Tuesday September 16th, 2003, the Malaysian police raided the Limau Manis camp, Putra Jaya, where as many as 2,000 Acehnese persons who had fled the conflict, including some 500 women and children and a considerable proportion of ill or infirm persons, have been living in a temporary settlement. Up to six police trucks were used to transport at least 200 detainees (now thought to number over 400 detainees) away following the operation. It is reported that four men may have drowned in a nearby river while trying to escape arrest during this raid.
On October 2nd, 20 busses filled with detained immigrants, including an estimated 402 Acehnese asylum seekers who were arrested at the Limau Manis camp, were loaded onto Indonesian ship KM Taruna Sakti at Port Klang. The ship departed during the afternoon for Belawan, North Sumatra, but its final destination remains unknown. The 402 asylum seekers were reportedly threatened that if they did not go peacefully, they would be “forced violently” to do so. Our sources indicate that they have not as yet seen these asylum seekers in the port of Belawan.
Of further concern is the risk of further arrests and deportation of Acehnese asylum seekers remaining in camps in Malaysia, besides which, a lack of sanitation and medicine in these camps is contributing to the alarming spread of disease, notably Malaria.
OMCT vigorously condemns the forced deportation of Acehnese asylum seekers back to Indonesia, and potentially Aceh, where they face grave risks to their safety and personal integrity due to the ongoing conflict and prevalent humanitarian crisis. OMCT calls upon the Malaysian authorities to immediately launch a moratorium on deportations, as sought by the UNHCR, and to intervene in order to improve the humanitarian situation of the refugee camps within its territory. OMCT deems that States have an obligation not to expel or return a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he/she would be in danger of being subjected to serious violations of his/her personal integrity, including torture and extrajudicial execution.
Concerning the situation in Aceh
Reports indicate that between 200 and 1000 civilians have died as a result of the new phase of the 26-year old conflict in the Indonesian province of Aceh, which began on May 18th, 2003, when Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri declared a state of emergency and imposed martial law in the province. This included closing the Acehnese borders off to all foreign media and humanitarian organisations, and an augmentation of the military and police presence to some 40’000 to 50’000 men, who are now reportedly engaged in committing widespread human rights violations against civilians and members of the nascent and fragile civil society in the country. An estimated 40’000 civilians, mainly thought to be women and children, are reportedly displaced in Aceh, and are without sufficient food, water and medicine, in what can only be described as a serious humanitarian crisis. There are also reports surfacing of the discovery of at least one mass grave in the province.
For further information, please contact: Michael Anthony - tel: + 41 22 809 49 39, e-mail: ma@omct.org