By Hasnoor Hussain, Rozanna Latiff and Jeremy Seng
LUMUT, Malaysia, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Malaysia began the process of deporting around 1,500 Myanmar nationals on Tuesday as part of a refugee repatriation programme, defying objections from the United Nations and dozens of human rights groups.
The deportation is the first phase of a broader plan agreed with Myanmar that could see the return of as many as 5,000 people.
Malaysia has said that the programme was strictly voluntary, but the UN refugee agency and civil society organisations have raised concerns about the safety of those being returned, with Myanmar still in a state of civil war.
Dozens of buses accompanied by security vehicles arrived at a stadium near the Lumut naval base in Malaysia's Perak state on Tuesday morning, before being moved to the port where two Myanmar naval vessels and a hospital ship had docked, according to Reuters witnesses. It was unclear who were aboard the buses.
A home ministry spokesperson confirmed the deportation process had begun but declined to divulge further details, referring media to the ministry's August 27 statement.
In the statement, the ministry said the repatriation involved 1,476 Myanmar nationals identified by the Myanmar government.
A Myanmar government spokesperson and its embassy in Kuala Lumpur did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Myanmar's foreign ministry said this month that it was working with countries to facilitate the voluntary return of verified displaced persons in a safe and dignified manner, according to a state media report.
CONDITIONS IN MYANMAR UNSAFE FOR REFUGEES, UNHCR SAYS
Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 coup triggered a civil war, with the military fighting armed groups across multiple frontlines.
The UNHCR has said current conditions "do not support the safe and sustainable return of refugees from Myanmar" and that it had not been involved in identifying those being returned.
Malaysia has tightened immigration enforcement in recent years amid rising local hostility against refugees, particularly ethnic Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar.
According to UNHCR data, Malaysia hosts around 193,000 refugees from Myanmar, around two-thirds of whom were Rohingya.
A wave of online hate speech and misinformation this year has led to greater harassment and scrutiny of the Rohingya community, including widespread school closures.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said this month that he would invite Myanmar's military chief-turned-President Min Aung Hlaing for an official visit in return for accepting the Rohingya refugees.
Anwar said in July that Myanmar had agreed to take back as many as 5,000 of the Rohingya refugees, prompting concerns from rights groups.
It was unclear if any Rohingya refugees were among those being repatriated on Tuesday.
James Bawi Thang Bik, who represents refugees from Myanmar's Chin community in Malaysia, said he was aware of several asylum-seekers among those being deported, including a UNHCR card holder, citing information gathered by community leaders.
Based on accounts of refugees who have previously been deported, those being sent back could face forced conscription into the military or detention in Myanmar, James said.
"We fear that they may be forced to fight on the frontlines of the conflict. For many it is akin to sending them to a death sentence in their own home," he said.
(Reporting by Hasnoor Hussein, Rozanna Latiff and Jeremy Seng; Additional reporting by Devjyot Ghoshal in Bangkok; Writing by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by David Stanway )
