Malaysia’s Reluctance to Aid Boat People Due to Close Proximity

Tempo.co (Indonesia)

18 May 2015

TEMPO.CO, Kuala Lumpur – Analysts said that Malaysia’s refusal to accept Rohingya refugees, unlike Bosnian Muslim or Palestinian asylum seekers was likely due to the huge numbers fleeing Myanmar and close proximity between the two countries.

Dr. Oh Ei Sun from S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University said Bosnia in Southern Europe is located much further away from Malaysia compared to neighboring Myanmar. Oh added that Bosnain Muslims seeking refuge were far fewer than the Rohingya.

“With the Palestinians and Bosnians, the Situations were totally different. They are from faraway and in small numbers, so humanitarian gestures in welcoming a number of them are almost harmless both domestically and internationally,” Oh said as quoted by Malay Mail Online, on Monday, May 18, 2015.

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