Legalising refugee status on protection the security of Malaysia

• Main Authors: Ab Hamid, Zuraini, Mustafa, Maizatun, Aqsha Lubis, Nur Sarah Maimun
• Format: Conference or Workshop Item
• Language: English; English; English
• Published: Jabatan Kehakiman Syariah Malaysia & Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Laws 2021
• Subjects: K Law (General)
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/89409/1/Cover%20ICFL.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/89409/2/Chapter%2012%20ICFL.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/89409/11/Cover%20v2.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/89409/

The 1951 Refugee Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and 1967 Protocol is one of the cornerstones of the international legal regime. However, Malaysia has not enacted any national refugee legislation and is not a signatory state party to any United Nations protocol relating to refugees due to security issues. It will be a great challenge to the country when the government has no information on who is entering the country and what he is doing inside the country. On the issue of security, the concerns are more on national security, terrorism, extremism and crime. Enforcement bodies often face difficulty in finding refugee perpetrators since their status is generally "unknown". Using the qualitative method of research, this article is aimed at finding gaps in the law regarding receiving refugees and their status. The paper also looks at Islamic law perspectives on refugee, and to a certain extent, the stand taken by Muslim countries on the issue. This article suggests that Malaysia should have specific binding legislation and a proper mechanism to receive, register and process refugees.