Myanmar Refugees Protest Alleged UN Discrimination

Myanmar Refugees Protest Alleged UN Discrimination
01-21-090506ET

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP)--At least 50 Myanmar refugees demonstrated Wednesday outside the United Nations refugee agency office to protest alleged discrimination by the U.N. organization.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, denied the claim by the action group All Burma Democratic Force.

The protesters, including women and children, held placards saying "We need better treatment from UNHCR," and "Our future depends on UNHCR."

Anti-riot police were deployed, but there was no trouble.

Aung Kyaw Moe, 37, the protest group's spokesman, said UNHCR officials had discriminated against some of them.

"They divided us along ethnic group and won't allow some of us to enter the UNHCR office," he said, saying it was causing ethnic tension among the various refugee communities.

The UNHCR had said there were about 45,400 refugees and asylum-seekers in Malaysia, of whom 40,400 are from Myanmar, formerly called Burma.

The majority are Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar's Rakhine state, while the rest are Christian Chins, Karens and Shan.

The demonstrators in Kuala Lumpur demanded fair treatment from the U.N. body regardless of ethnicity or religion, especially regarding issues related to resettlement in third countries.

The U.N. organization said it recognized their frustrations.

"UNHCR's policies towards all refugee groups are nondiscriminatory. We do our utmost to assist and protect all refugees," said Yante Ismail, the U.N. agency Kuala Lumpur office spokeswoman.

"The UNHCR will continue to engage different refugee communities to address their problems," she said.