Malaysia

Philippines

In 2015, 10 years after my first RSD interview, with work in 6 different operations, I was no longer an entry-level caseworker in UNHCR. I was heading all country level efforts in relation to UNHCR’s statelessness mandate. I had a 7-digit budget with a specific focus on the identification and reduction of statelessness within the Indian Tamil community who were brought to West Malaysia from India and Sri Lanka to work in plantations during the British colonial rule in the 19th century. We were moving closer to getting a reliable baseline figure and acquiring nationality for the stateless populations. But things were rather complicated in Sabah, one of the two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo in East Malaysia where this Filipino refugee woman who sent an inquiry to the general e-mailing address of UNHCR was born and living 28 years of her young life. Having been born as the daughter of Pilipino Muslim refugee parents, she was living on an immigration pass she had to renew every month. She could not travel outside Malaysia. She did not speak any Filipino languages. With her dad’s passing away one month before, her mother with cancer, she was looking after her 3 siblings. In the absence of any official documentation that could prove her nationality, she could not get married to her partner. UNHCR’s public information and digital media catch all phrase that year in 2015 is “One Refugee without Hope is too Many” and she was one out of many 80,000 Pilipino refugees in Sabah without hope. Could we help? No. Pilipino refugees in Sabah were never categorized as refugees. UNHCR found the talk of local integration for Filipino Muslim refugees in Sabah too dangerous. Given the cross-border nature of these issues, there were some expressions of intentions to act, but the potential risks and resourcing consequences made it arduous to advocate for “the protection of refugees” with the government. The office did not want to make a move that would jeopardize its direct implementation work in West Malaysia with refugee populations. UNHCR’s decision to remain silent on Sabah and act to change the state behaviour was to protect its presence in the country rather than the Filipino refugees themselves. As we celebrated a landmark exercise for UNHCR’s statelessness mandate and continued access to the refugees in West Malaysia, we dropped another front line that emerged in the battle for the rights of refugees in East Malaysia. This decision of political kind in nature effectively shut off a path for this community to seek redress for the violation of their human rights as well as their protection rights as refugees. We maintained collateral relationships with the government and received extra funding the next year with all the success stories projected in the country operational planning, but did not engage in any protection activities in Sabah.

Pilipino Muslim Refugees in Sabah: Lost in Numbers

The UNHCR narrative&nbsp;discusses successful cases of local integration, potentially excluding or minimising examples where local integration was unsuccessful or faced significant challenges. This type of inconsistency creates a gap in understanding the diverse realities faced by refugees in different regions. The ideal of local integration and the reality on the ground can often differ from the theoretical framework due to various reasons, such as limited resources, political circumstances, and local attitudes towards refugees. The process and challenges of local integration are simplified neglecting the complex nuances and obstacles often faced in the process of integrating refugees into new societies. More transparent data representation would include&nbsp;both successful and unsuccessful cases, and clear definitions of how success and failure are defined and measured. Questions: <ol><li>How does UNHCR measure the success of local integration, and does this metric account for the wide range of refugee experiences and host country contexts?</li><li>What are the varying challenges faced in different geographic and socio-political contexts?</li><li>How does the UNHCR handle unsuccessful attempts at local integration in their data representation?</li><li>What qualitative data is available to supplement the quantitative findings, to provide a more complete picture of the refugee experience?</li><li>What are the more detailed accounts of local integration experiences across a broader range of contexts, including less successful or more challenging situations.</li><li>Are there any data on the specific challenges faced in host countries that are struggling with local integration, and the measures being taken to address these challenges?</li><li>are there any&nbsp;detailed metrics on the qualitative aspects of local integration, such as refugee satisfaction, level of social integration, and perceived challenges from the refugees themselves?</li></ol>

Examining the Long-Term Non-Integration Limbo

They are the cornerstone of refugee protection and the key legal documents that form the basis of UNHCR’s work.

The 1951 Convention provides the internationally recognized definition of a refugee and outlines the legal protection, rights and assistance a refugee is entitled to receive. 

UNHCR serves as the ‘guardian’ of these documents and assists governments in translating them into national laws to ensure refugees are protected and can excise their rights.

The 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol 

What is local integration?

The right to seek and engage in lawful employment in the country of asylum, enabling you to support yourself and contribute to society.

Right to Access to Employment

If a rationing system is in place in the host country, you should receive the same treatment as the country's nationals in terms of the distribution of goods in short supply.

Rationing

Host countries should treat you as favourably as their own nationals in matters related to housing, including regulations, laws, and control by public authorities.

Housing

The right to access formal education or appropriate educational opportunities for children and adults, ensuring their right to learn and develop their skills.

Right to Access to Education

The UNHCR narrative on local integration emphasizes the idea that it's a gradual process in which refugees and internally displaced people slowly become part of the local community where they live. The narrative underscores successful initiatives in countries like Mexico and Brazil, where local integration programs have helped relocate refugees to areas with greater opportunities for work and better access to services. For instance, the Mexican program relocates refugees to municipalities where there's a demand for labor and capacity in health and education services.

The narrative also highlights how these efforts contribute to the economy. For example, in Mexico, relocated individuals contribute millions in annual tax revenue. Similarly, in Brazil, the relocation of Venezuelans has led to a high rate of labor market integration, even amid the pandemic. Furthermore, in West African countries, initiatives have been put in place to integrate former Ivorian refugees, with the support of international partners like the World Bank.

In terms of challenges, UNHCR acknowledges obstacles such as complex governmental coordination, restrictive policy frameworks, limited job opportunities, and administrative barriers. The organization recognizes that securing access to land for housing and livelihoods poses a significant challenge, requiring urgent system rethinking.


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