KUALA LUMPUR: The government is investigating claims that fake UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) cards are being sold, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Shahidan Kassim said the National Security Council had been informed of the matter.
"We have advised the council to lodge a police report so that investigation can be carried out. We received information that there are thousands of people at the UNHCR office applying for the cards as either refugees or those seeking political asylum.
Shahidan said the authorities had trouble identifying the refugees as they came into the country without documents.
“We need to know how they were able to enter the country without any documents,” he said.
Shahidan added that the possibility of allowing the refugees to enter the workforce had been discussed with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
He was responding to a supplementary question by William Leong (PKR-Selayang), who claimed that fake UNHCR cards were sold between RM1500 and RM3500.
Shahidan said as Malaysia is not a party of the Convention and Protocol Relating to Status of Refugees, refugees here are meant to be housed temporarily here before being transferred to a third country or being returned to their homeland.
"According to records by UNHCR, there were those who have been moved to Australia and United States but the number is relatively small. Overall, there are currently 154,219 political asylums and refugee status seekers here, of which the majority of them are from Myanmar," he said.