Malaysia denies entry to boats carrying 300 Myanmar migrants

Malaysia's coast guard escorted two boats carrying nearly 300 undocumented Myanmar migrants back from its waters after they were found in a state of exhaustion due to a lack of food and water, according to a senior agency official.

The boats were discovered on Friday, January 3, about two nautical miles southwest of the Malaysian resort island of Langkawi. Authorities provided the migrants with food and clean drinking water after their rescue, the agency reported.

“We are also working closely with Thai enforcement agencies to gather more information about the boats' movements,” said Director-General Mohd Rosli Abdullah in a statement on Saturday, January 4.

The coast guard did not specify whether the migrants were Rohingya, a predominantly Muslim minority group from Myanmar who often flee due to persecution, as they are considered foreigners and denied citizenship in Myanmar.

On the same day, Malaysian police detained 196 undocumented Myanmar migrants after their boat landed on Langkawi’s beach. Authorities identified them as mostly ethnic Rohingya, including 71 children and 57 women.

The detained migrants were taken for documentation and health checks, police confirmed in a separate statement.

For years, many Rohingya have attempted to reach neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Thailand, primarily during the calm seas from October to April.

As Malaysia does not recognize refugee status, the country has increasingly turned away boats carrying Rohingya refugees and rounded up thousands of undocumented migrants in overcrowded detention centers.