Rohingya refugees who fled persecution in war-torn Myanmar reacted with alarm on Tuesday as Malaysia began a process to ship hundreds of them back into the hands of the military junta.
The Malaysian government started the process to deport nearly 1,500 refugees as part of a widely condemned repatriation programme agreed with Myanmar that could see as many as 5,000 people returned. The first group are due to leave on two Myanmarese warships and a hospital ship, which are already docked at the Lumut naval base in Perak state.
