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Malaysia halts UNHCR refugee registrations pending biometric system rollout
The cabinet ordered a temporary freeze as Malaysia builds its Dokumen Pendaftaran Pelarian programme, which would restructure how refugee data, identity checks, and monitoring are handled, involving enforcement agencies.
Malaysia has ordered the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, to stop registering new refugees while the government builds a biometric identification system aimed at giving it greater control over displaced people in the country, according to SCMP Economy.
The cabinet directed UNHCR to temporarily halt registrations while Malaysia restructures refugee management through the Dokumen Pendaftaran Pelarian, or refugee registration document, programme that was launched in January, a move Deputy Foreign Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni discussed in parliament.
Officials said the DPP is intended to let Malaysia coordinate data, verify identities, and monitor refugees “without relying on the records of any foreign entities,” and that the screening process would involve enforcement agencies to ensure only eligible refugees receive the document.
Rights advocates, however, warned the freeze could leave newly arrived asylum seekers unable to prove they need protection in a country that does not grant them formal legal status, with Malaysia already hosting more than 215,000 displaced people.