Xinjiang Uighurs persecuted by China often flee to Turkey via Southeast Asia, where they face the risk of extradition to China. On September 15, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post noted that the Malaysian government made it clear for the first time that it would never extradite Uyghur refugees to China. The move, which could anger Beijing, is a responsible one, according to analysts.
Mohd Redzuan Md Yusof, a minister in the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office, reportedly replied to Parliament in September that “if any Uyghur refugees flee to Malaysia for refuge, Malaysia will never repatriate them, even if the Chinese government directly requests it.” The move, though not publicly announced, marks the first time Malaysia has stated the status of Uyghur refugees, in stark contrast to Indonesia, which quietly repatriated three Uyghur refugees to China last month.
Sean R. Roberts, a professor of international development at George Washington University, said the move was an important gesture by Malaysia, an issue that Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Thailand have been reluctant to face, and “is likely to anger Beijing, but it’s the responsible thing to do.”
Mustafa Akyol, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, an American think tank, and a well-known Turkish writer, pointed out that although China’s persecution of the Uyghurs has increased in recent years and many Muslim leaders have turned a blind eye out of “friendship with China,” Malaysia’s stance symbolizes a “starting point,” representing Muslim-majority countries that will take action in the future to “protect the Uyghurs from China’s wrath.
It is believed that between 2010 and 2016, as many as 10,000 Chinese Uyghur refugees fled to Indonesia via Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, but there is no evidence that Chinese Uyghurs have the means to flee China now. The Malaysian government’s move may trigger more Uyghurs to seek refugee status in the country.
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