Malaysia’s welcome for Min Aung Hlaing undermines its stand on justice

On October 8, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim received Myanmar’s President Min Aung Hlaing successful Putrajaya with a defender of honour and an authoritative luncheon, successful the subject chief’s archetypal sojourn since the 2021 coup. Nine days earlier, Malaysia sent 1,476 Myanmar nationals back by oversea successful the archetypal signifier of a program to instrumentality 5,000 people.

Kuala Lumpur calls this pragmatic diplomacy. In reality, it lends a mediate power’s credibility to the Trump administration’s retreat from planetary accountability, weakening the laws and institutions smaller states trust connected most.

Domestic pressures

Since May, a surge of online hatred code and misinformation has targeted the Rohingya, Malaysia’s largest exile community. By precocious July, astatine slightest 9 Rohingya assemblage schools had closed oregon faced closure orders, and much than 100 Rohingya told UNHCR that residents of their Penang colony had driven them out.

The hostility ignores the facts: Malaysia’s constabulary main says Rohingya relationship for 0.02 percent of crime. Yet probe by INITIATE.MY and the Center for the Study of Organized Hate recovered AI-generated contented amplifying anti-Rohingya disinformation crossed Malaysia, Indonesia, India and Bangladesh, casting refugees arsenic a menace and legitimising vigilante violence.

Electoral authorities plays a part. After dense losses successful 3 authorities elections, and with a wide predetermination owed by February 2028, Anwar’s conjugation whitethorn spot a hard enactment connected Rohingya returns arsenic a amusement of control, though elector disillusionment and right-wing rivals marque immoderate electoral gains uncertain.

Impunity goes mainstream

Malaysia is not acting alone. Mongolia hosted Vladimir Putin successful 2024 contempt an ICC apprehension warrant, and Hungary welcomed Benjamin Netanyahu successful 2025 contempt another. Kuala Lumpur denies this is recognition, yet Anwar says Malaysia volition enactment towards Myanmar’s afloat reintegration into ASEAN, and Min Aung Hlaing wants a spot astatine the bloc’s November acme successful Manila. Each invited makes the adjacent easier and tells leaders accused of atrocities, from Netanyahu to Min Aung Hlaing, that diplomatic rehabilitation is imaginable without accountability.

ASEAN has tried this before. In April 2021, Min Aung Hlaing agreed to the Five-Point Consensus, past ignored it: The unit continued, the ASEAN peculiar envoy ne'er met Aung San Suu Kyi, and inclusive dialog ne'er began. The bloc’s 1 existent lever was excluding subject leaders from its summits. Myanmar Specialist, Arkar Hein, said “Welcoming him backmost with thing asked successful instrumentality rewards that defiance and tells Naypyidaw that clip and a staged predetermination tin execute what
compromise would different require. Each handshake overseas besides makes the authorities little consenting to connection its opponents existent concessions, and convinces them that lone the battlefield volition determine Myanmar’s future.”

A question of consistency

Malaysia has spent decades gathering its credibility arsenic a determination peacemaker, a hard-won estimation it present puts astatine risk. It has facilitated the Bangsamoro bid process since 2001, helping negociate a landmark bid statement successful the confederate Philippines, and has facilitated talks successful confederate Thailand since 2013. In November 2024, Anwar welcomed the ICC’s apprehension warrants for Netanyahu and his erstwhile defence minister, saying they “should beryllium arrested adjacent if they are visiting different countries”. That aforesaid month, the ICC authoritative sought an apprehension warrant for Min Aung Hlaing for alleged crimes against humanity targeting the Rohingya, and an Argentinian tribunal has since issued its own.

The Gambia’s genocide lawsuit against Myanmar astatine the International Court of Justice centres connected the 2016-17 operations Min Aung Hlaing commanded, which killed thousands of Rohingya, included wide rapes and burned hundreds of villages, driving much than 700,000 radical into Bangladesh. UN investigators called for him to look genocide charges. Malaysia is not a enactment to the Rome Statute and has nary ineligible work to apprehension him. But its credibility arsenic a peacemaker and connected Palestine rests connected applying 1 modular to everyone.

Returns without safeguards

The returns remainder connected assurances nary autarkic assemblage tin verify. UNHCR says it was not progressive successful the returns and had nary entree to verify that they were voluntary, and that harmless conditions bash not exist. Those returned reportedly included 27 children. Though not a enactment to the Refugee Convention, Malaysia is bound by the customary rule of non-refoulement, and the UN Special Rapporteur connected Myanmar has warned of important risks.

Naypyidaw says nary Rohingya are progressive due to the fact that it does not recognise them arsenic citizens, but different returnees besides hazard arbitrary detention, prosecution and forced recruitment. The subject does not adjacent power Rakhine State, wherever the Arakan Army holds much than 90 percent of the territory. On September 28, a time earlier returns began, a subject aerial onslaught reportedly killed astatine slightest 50 civilians there, pursuing much than a twelve different wide killings by the subject earlier this year.

Nor tin the military-backed authorities present the bid that harmless instrumentality requires. Its predetermination saw nary voting successful 67 of 330 townships, and erstwhile Min Aung Hlaing offered bid talks successful April, the National Unity Government (NUG) and large taste equipped groups refused. Without a ceasefire and an inclusive governmental process, assurances of harmless instrumentality ringing hollow.

Malaysia’s vexation is nevertheless legitimate. It has hosted refugees for decades with small planetary support, and resettlement has shrunk since the Trump medication suspended United States exile admissions successful January 2025. But failed burden-sharing cannot warrant returns without safeguards.

Pressure connected the court

The ICC exists truthful that victims of genocide, warfare crimes and crimes against humanity tin find justness erstwhile their ain states neglect them. That ngo present faces unprecedented pressure. On October 9, hours aft erstwhile ICC justice Navi Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Trump medication sanctioned the tribunal itself. Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Chad and Venezuela person announced their withdrawal.

Yet mediate powers tin propulsion back. Seventy-nine ICC members, including Canada, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa, backed the tribunal aft the archetypal US sanctions successful February 2025, and successful May Hungary’s caller authorities reversed its predecessor’s withdrawal. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines surrendered erstwhile President Rodrigo Duterte to The Hague, and connected October 8 judges recovered him acceptable to basal proceedings for crimes against humanity, with proceedings owed to statesman connected November 30.

Middle powers should accidental no

Middle powers similar Malaysia, and blocs specified arsenic ASEAN and the European Union, cannot halt US sanctions, but they request not travel the Trump administration’s lead. As Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told the World Economic Forum successful January, mediate powers “must enactment together, due to the fact that if we’re not astatine the table, we’re connected the menu”.

Malaysia and its neighbours should pb by saying no: No to efforts to weaken the court, nary to treating Min Aung Hlaing’s presidency arsenic a cleanable slate, and nary to Rohingya returns into an progressive conflict. Malaysia should backmost efforts to clasp him accountable if ICC judges contented a warrant, and reconsider acceding to the Rome Statute, a determination it abandoned successful 2019.

Saying nary does not mean disengaging. Kuala Lumpur should necktie Myanmar’s reintegration into ASEAN to existent advancement connected the Five-Point Consensus, starting with an extremity to unit and inclusive dialog involving the NUG and taste equipped organisations. At home, it should intermission returns until an autarkic assemblage confirms they are harmless and voluntary, and clasp accountable those who evict, endanger oregon onslaught refugees.

Malaysia should not transportation this load alone. ASEAN partners, members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and donors should money exile registration, acquisition and integration, and resettlement countries should reconstruct their commitments. Governments should besides clasp tech platforms accountable for amplifying anti-refugee disinformation and necessitate swift enactment against incitement.

For years, Malaysia has offered refuge to the Rohingya and others fleeing Myanmar erstwhile fewer countries would. That grounds gives it the standing, and the responsibility, to support the strategy of planetary justness it has agelong championed.

The views expressed successful this nonfiction are the author’s ain and bash not needfully bespeak Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.