Myanmar has begun releasing hundreds of ethnic Rakhine deported from Malaysia after holding them for weeks without a clear explanation, following diplomatic pressure from Kuala Lumpur over their detention.
The first detainees were freed on Wednesday, just two days after Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan faced questions in parliament over their fate. Nearly 1,500 Myanmar nationals, including more than 400 ethnic Rakhine, were deported from Malaysia on September 29. However, unlike other returnees, the Rakhine were detained for interrogation at military facilities in Yangon’s Thanlyin and Hlaingthayar, according to The Irrawaddy.
Those possessing national identification documents were allowed to return home from Wednesday, while others faced delays over incomplete registration papers. The Khamee Youth Unity Association said 26 members of the Khamee community were among those detained. Families had struggled to secure their release, with authorities providing little explanation for the prolonged detention.
The detention comes amid heightened tensions in Rakhine State, where the Arakan Army (AA) controls 14 of the state's 17 townships and is advancing towards Sittwe and Kyaukphyu. The military regime had already restricted ethnic Rakhine from returning to their home state in late 2023 and early 2024 as the AA expanded its territorial control.
Malaysia deported 1,479 Myanmar nationals in the first phase of a controversial plan to return 5,000 people in stages. The move has drawn criticism from the UN refugee agency and international rights groups, which warn that returning people to a country engulfed in civil war exposes them to serious risks.
The UN has cautioned that Myanmar's ongoing conflict makes safe and voluntary repatriation impossible under current conditions. Reports that some returnees are being forcibly recruited into the military have further intensified concerns over their safety, raising fresh questions about the junta's treatment of people sent back to a country where even basic protection remains uncertain.
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