KUALA LUMPUR — Batalion Anak Muda (BAM) has called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to establish clear monthly and annual targets for the repatriation and processing of refugees in Malaysia, arguing that returning relatively small groups would not be sufficient to address the country’s wider refugee challenge.
In a statement dated Aug 28, the non-governmental organisation said the government’s plan to begin repatriating an initial group of 5,000 Rohingya refugees was an important development, but said the initiative should be supported by a defined timeline and measurable targets.
BAM welcomed Anwar’s announcement on July 29 that the Myanmar government had agreed to receive the initial group of 5,000 Rohingya refugees.
It also welcomed confirmation by the Home Ministry that the first phase of voluntary repatriation, involving 1,476 Myanmar nationals, is scheduled for Sept 29, while another 4,008 individuals will be placed under the Refugee Registration Document (DPP) registration system.
“This marks the first significant step after years in which the issue was left without a clear repatriation mechanism,” BAM said.
According to the organisation, UNHCR data showed that Malaysia had 215,600 registered refugees and asylum seekers as of the end of February 2026, including 126,144 Rohingya.
However, BAM said the repatriation of the initial group alone would have limited impact on the overall number of refugees and asylum seekers in the country.
“Support for this policy direction comes with fundamental questions that need to be answered: at what rate and over what period does the government actually plan to resolve the remaining 215,600 registered cases?” it said.
The organisation said the government needed to go beyond announcing the first group by setting “clear targets and a timeline” against which progress could be assessed.
BAM also referred to UNHCR operational data from October 2025, which it said indicated that 49 per cent of an estimated 20,000 new registrations among the Myanmar-origin population over a period of about 10 months were linked to new births rather than new arrivals in Malaysia.
“This amounts to an estimated 9,800 births during the period, or an average of about 980 new births a month among this group alone,” BAM said.
Based on those estimates, BAM argued that the repatriation of 5,000 people could effectively be offset by new births within less than five months.
The calculation, it said, did not include other Myanmar ethnic communities, the 21,776 refugees and asylum seekers from more than 50 other countries registered in Malaysia, or new arrivals driven by continuing conflicts.
At the estimated rate of 980 births a month, BAM said nearly 11,760 births could be recorded annually among the group — more than twice the size of the initial group identified for repatriation.
“Without a consistent and large-scale repatriation rate, the overall figure could remain the same or continue to increase, even while repatriation is being carried out,” it said.
To ensure a meaningful reduction in the number of cases, BAM proposed that the government establish a minimum processing capacity of 20,000 cases a month, covering voluntary repatriation, DPP registration and resettlement to third countries.
The organisation said such a capacity could result in a net reduction of about 19,000 cases each month, based on its estimate of new births, potentially allowing the remaining 215,600 registered cases to be substantially processed within about 11 to 12 months.
“We propose that the government establish a processing-capacity target … of at least 20,000 cases per month,” it said.
BAM said meeting such a target would require the government to expand its administrative capacity, establish additional DPP registration centres, deploy more screening officers and strengthen diplomatic engagement with Myanmar and third countries on repatriation and resettlement.
However, it stressed that any effort to increase processing capacity should not come at the expense of existing security screening standards.
The organisation also urged the Home Ministry to publish a comprehensive roadmap containing monthly and annual targets, allowing the public to monitor the progress of the policy.
BAM said its support for the government’s overall direction must be accompanied by “numerical accountability”, enabling Malaysians to assess whether the targets set by the authorities were being achieved. – August 30, 2026