UN rights expert slams Malaysia over attack on protesters

UN News Centre

UNITED NATIONS, Jul 12: An independent United Nations human rights expert today said Malaysia’s heavy-handed control of a demonstration on Saturday risks democracy there, and expressed concern with reports of detention of political leaders.

Media reports indicated Malaysian authorities used tear gas and water cannons against protesters in the capital, Kuala Lumpur, on Saturday, reportedly leading to one death, several injuries and the arrest of more than 1,600 people.

“The right to freedom of opinion and expression, including in the form of peaceful protests, is essential for democracy,” said Frank La Rue (pic), UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

“By declaring the demonstration illegal, sealing off parts of the capital in advance and responding in such a heavy-handed manner against peaceful demonstrators, the Government of Malaysia risks undermining democratic progress in the country,” he said in a news release.

“Actions taken by the authorities prior to and during the rally unduly restricted the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.”

Declaring the assembly illegal “based on claims that it is trying to topple the Government or is a risk to national security and public order – in the absence of any credible evidence to substantiate such claims – is also an unnecessary restriction of civil and political rights,” he said.

For his part, El Hadji Malick Sow, Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, said: “We remain deeply concerned about the detention of six individuals since 25 June under the Emergency Ordinance, which allows for detention without trial for up to 60 days.”

The Working Group also reiterated its recommendation, made to the Government of Malaysia following a visit to the country in June 2010, to repeal the Emergency Ordinance and other preventive laws, on the grounds that they significantly hinder fundamental human rights, such as the right to fair trial.

The rights experts reminded the Government of its obligation to fully respect the rights to peaceful assembly, association, and expression, as guaranteed under the Federal Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. They also recalled that as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Malaysia has pledged to uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights.

Mr. La Rue and Mr. Sow are independent, non-paid experts reporting to the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

http://en.harakah.net.my/index.php/berita-utama/3123-un-rights-expert-slams-malaysia-over-attack-on-protesters.html

UN: High radiation outside Japan's exclusion zone

Reuters – A protester wearing protective suit and a gas mask poses during a protest in central Sofia March 30, …

By GEORGE JAHN, Associated Press George Jahn, Associated Press – 1 hr 36 mins ago

VIENNA – Recent radiation readings outside the exclusion zone around Japan's nuclear disaster show radiation substantially higher than levels at which the U.N. nuclear agency would recommend evacuations, agency officials said.

The comments Wednesday could add to the debate over how far people need to stay away from Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear complex, which was crippled in the country's March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Elena Buglova, an official from the International Atomic Energy Agency, said of the reading: "As a ratio, it was about two times higher" than levels at which the agency recommends evacuations.

Iitate is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) from the Fukushima complex where emergency crews are battling to keep radioactivity from spreading.

Japanese officials have told residents to evacuate within a 12-mile (20-kilometer) zone and to stay indoors within 18 miles (30 kilometers) of the damaged complex, but U.S. officials have recommended citizens stay at least 50 miles (80 kilometers) away.

The officials emphasized that the readings at the village of Iitate were sporadic and only at one measuring point.

Denis Flory, a senior IAEA official, demurred when asked whether the agency was recommending that the village be cleared of residents but said it had advised Japanese authorities to "carefully assess the situation."

"The highest values were found in a relatively small area in the northwest from the Fukushima power plant and the first assessment indicates that one of the IAEA operational criteria for evacuation is exceeded in Iitate village," he told reporters.

Buglova also indicated the readings were preliminary saying "there is a range of uncertainty involved."

About 10 days ago, radiation in the village's tap water spiked, though they remained well below levels that would pose an immediate health risk. The latest reading came between March 18 and March 26, when a series of samples were taken from a wide area, according to a report on the agency's website. Both iodine-131 and cesium-137 were found in the samples.

Richard Morin, a medical physicist with the American College of Radiation, said the agency's evacuation limits are "intended to be extremely conservative," and that none of the levels found would pose a risk to human health. They all fell well below the radiation contained in a heart scan.

Separately, agency officials said Singapore authorities had measured radiation readings from cabbage imported from Japan that were up to nine times above international recommended safety levels — iodine 131 readings of up to 936 becquerels per kilogram.

Earlier, IAEA head Yukiya Amano told reporters that he had issued invitations to government ministers from the agency's 151 member nations to attend a June conference on safety procedures at nuclear plants worldwide in the wake of the Japan disaster.

Amano said the conference will focus on assessments of the Fukushima Dai-ichi disaster and lessons that need to be learned from it.

Play Video Reuters – Japan's Emperor tours evacuation centre

• Play Video Video:Japan Nuke Crisis: American in Dead Zone ABC News

___

Veronika Oleksyn contributed to this report.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110331/ap_on_he_me/un_japan_nuclear

UN Council slaps sanctions on Libya's Gadhafi

AP – Brazilian Ambassador to the United Nations Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, right, listens as United Nations …

By ANITA SNOW, Associated Press Anita Snow, Associated Press – 1 hr 20 mins ago

UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. Security Council moved as a powerful bloc Saturday to try to halt Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's deadly crackdown on protesters, slapping sanctions on him, his children and top associates.

Voting 15-0 after daylong discussions interrupted with breaks to consult with capitals back home, the council imposed an arms embargo and urged U.N. member countries to freeze the assets of Gadhafi, four of his sons and a daughter. The council also backed a travel ban on the Gadhafi family and close associates, including leaders of the revolutionary committees accused of much of the violence against opponents.

Council members additionally agreed to refer the Gadhafi regime's deadly crackdown on people protesting his rule to a permanent war crimes tribunal for an investigation of possible crimes against humanity.

The council said its actions were aimed at "deploring the gross and systematic violation of human rights, including the repression of peaceful demonstrators." And members expressed concern about civilian deaths, "rejecting unequivocally the incitement to hostility and violence against the civilian population made from the highest level of the Libyan government."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated council members for the unified vote, saying it "sends a strong message that gross violations of basic human rights will not be tolerated."

"I hope the message is heard, and heeded, by the regime in Libya," Ban said.

British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant called the vote "a powerful expression of the deep concern, indeed the anger, of the international community." U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said it was "a very powerful message to the leadership of Libya that this heinous killing must stop and that individuals will be held personally accountable."

French Ambassador Gerard Araud said the unanimous referral of the case to the tribunal signaled a new commitment by the international community to its responsibility to protect citizens. "A wind of liberty and change is sweeping throughout the Arab world and I think the Security Council succeeded in responding to this new era of international relations," he said.

Top EU diplomat Catherine Ashton said the European Union "fully endorses this resolution and will implement the restrictive measures as a matter of urgency." Ashton noted that the EU had already started work on its own sanctions, and formal adoption is expected soon.

The sanctions were welcomed by Libya's deputy U.N. ambassador, Ibrahim Dabbashi, whose entire mission is among Libyan diplomats around the world who have renounced Gadhafi.

Dabbashi said the council vote will engender "moral support for our people who are resisting" and could help defeat "this fascist regime still in existence in Tripoli." He called on the Libyan armed forces to abandon Gadhafi and throw their support to the protesters.

Richard Dicker, director of Human Rights Watch's international justice program, was impressed by the council's unanimous vote and said the action "sends a powerful signal on behalf of justice for the people of Libya and all others victimized by mass force and violence."

The Libyan uprising that began Feb. 15 has swept over nearly the entire eastern half of the country, snatching entire cities in that region out of the government's grasp. Gadhafi and his backers continue to hold the capital Tripoli and have threatened to put down protests aggressively.

There have been reports that Gadhafi's government forces have been firing indiscriminately on peaceful protesters and that as many as 1,000 people have died.

Council members did not consider imposing a no-fly zone over Libya, and no U.N.-sanctioned military action was planned. NATO also has ruled out any intervention in Libya.

Indian Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri noted his country is not an ICC member, and would have "preferred a calibrated and gradual approach," but decided to accept the referral because other council members believed it would help end the violence in Libya.

There had been doubts that China, a permanent council member with veto power, would join the vote if the referral to the tribunal was included. But Chinese Ambassador Li Baodong said his country was concerned about the large number of Chinese citizens who work in Libya.

Earlier on Saturday, U.S. President Barack Obama said in a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Gadhafi needs to do what's right for his country by "leaving now."

The White House on Friday announced sweeping new sanctions and temporarily abandoned its embassy in Tripoli as a final flight carrying American citizens left the embattled capital. The U.S. put an immediate freeze on all assets of the Libyan government held in American banks and other U.S. institutions. The sanctions also freeze assets held by Gadhafi and four of his children.

Britain and Canada, meanwhile, temporarily suspended operations at their embassies in Tripoli and evacuated their diplomatic staff.

Gadhafi is no stranger to international isolation.

U.N. sanctions were slapped on his country after suspected Libyan agents planted a bomb that blew up Pan Am Flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988, killing 270 people, mostly Americans.

Libya accepted responsibility for the bombing in 2003 and pledged to end efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction. The U.S. and Libya in 2009 exchanged ambassadors for the first time in 35 years, after Libya paid about $2.7 billion in compensation to the families of the Lockerbie victims.

In Geneva on Friday, the U.N. Human Rights Council called for an investigation into possible crimes against humanity in Libya and recommended Libya's suspension from membership of the world body's top human rights body.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110227/ap_on_re_us/libya_diplomacy

UN official: World should act on Libya crackdown

AP – The empty seats of the Libyan delegation are pictured before the Human Rights Council holds a Special …

By FRANK JORDANS and JOHN HEILPRIN, Associated Press Frank Jordans And John Heilprin, Associated Press – 44 mins ago

GENEVA – The U.N.'s top human rights official warned Friday that mass killings in Libya, possibly of thousands, require the world to "step in vigorously" and immediately end a brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters in the North African country.

As Libya faces growing diplomatic pressure from around the world, the U.N. High Commissioner spoke with the most urgency yet by a U.N. official, citing estimates that thousands may have died at the hands of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's security forces, possibly amounting to crimes against humanity.

"The crackdown in Libya of peaceful demonstrations is escalating alarmingly with reported mass killings, arbitrary arrests, detention and torture of protesters," Navi Pillay told the U.N. Human Rights Council during a daylong emergency meeting. "Tanks, helicopters and military aircraft have reportedly been used indiscriminately to attack the protesters. According to some sources, thousands may have been killed or injured."

Diplomats on the 47-nation council debated whether to call for Libya's ouster from the council, in what would be an unprecedented suspension of one of its own members. It will also decide whether to heed Pillay's call for an independent U.N.-led probe of abuses in Libya.

It was only last May that the former U.S. enemy was elected to the Geneva-based body as part of a series of attempts at political rehabilitation on the world stage.

"The world is watching you, the world will hold you to account," British Prime Minister David Cameron told reporters Friday, referring to Gadhafi's regime. "International justice has a long reach and a long memory."

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also was to meet with the powerful U.N. Security Council later Friday in New York to consider possible sanctions against Libya.

European nations were leading the effort to condemn Gadhafi's regime that has ruled for 42 years but now appears to have lost control of large parts of the country. Pillay reminded the council that Gadhafi had urged his supporters to battle protesters and "attack them in their lairs."

"Any official, at any level, ordering or carrying out atrocities and attacks can be held criminally accountable," she said.

It is the first time that the Geneva-based council has held a special session to scrutinize one of its members. Libya's ambassador did not attend, but some of its allies spoke out against sudden measures to punish Gadhafi.

Nigeria and China were among those who condemned the violence but rejected the call to suspend Libya from the council.

Pakistan's ambassador, Zamir Akram, said the 57 members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference "strongly condemn the excessive use of force" in Libya.

"Muslims will no longer tolerate inequalities and injustice," he told the council. "A new dawn has come. The rules of the game have changed. Those who do not embrace it will be swept away."

Akram made no mention of supporting Libya's suspension from the council.

Gadhafi's response to the uprising in his country has been the harshest by any Arab leader in the wave of protests that has swept the Middle East recently, toppling the presidents of Libya's neighbors Egypt and Tunisia.

But observers of the Human Rights Council say African and Asian nations are wary of setting too strong a precedent that could be used against other human rights abusing regimes in future.

Suspending Libya's "rights of membership" under the rules for the council would require two-thirds approval of all the 192 countries in the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

Human rights activists said they expect a strongly worded resolution to pass, though it might be watered down by efforts to achieve the broadest possible consensus.

While efforts to ostracize Libya from the council are being driven by Europe, the United States and some Latin American countries, Asian and African nations will be wary of setting a precedent that can be used against them or their allies in future, said Peter Splinter of Amnesty International.

"This is a test of the council and the willingness of some of its more active members, such as Pakistan, South Africa, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, to take a principled stand on human rights," he said.

In Brussels, NATO planned to hold an emergency meeting Friday to consider the deteriorating situation in Libya. It had received no requests to intervene and said it would only do so if it were given a United Nations mandate.

The U.N. Security Council also planned to meet later Friday in New York to consider actions against Gadhafi's regime.

French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said France and Britain would press the Security Council for a "total embargo on weapons as well as sanctions, and also the referral of a case to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity."

The Security Council rarely does so, but ordered an investigation into crimes in Darfur in 2005.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Friday that Europe was united behind sanctions against Libya and called for swift EU and U.N. action. He laid out an initial sanctions plan that would include an embargo on weapons and goods that could be used to oppress protesters, and asset freezes and a travel embargo on Ghadafi's family.

"This regime in Libya is lashing out madly, it is waging war against its own people," he said in an interview with WDR radio Friday.

The EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton also said the Security Council must "take action" and the EU bloc should consider imposing travel restrictions and asset freezes to achieve a halt to the violence there and move toward democracy.

The United States backs suspending Libya from the Human Rights Council and also is considering a larger sanctions package that might include asset freezes and travel bans on senior Libyan officials, or a ban on the sale of U.S. military equipment.

"The council's responsibility is even greater when the violator is one of its own members," the U.S. ambassador to the council, Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe, said.

A petition released Friday signed by 63 non-governmental organizations around the world called on the General Assembly to remove Libya from the Human Rights Council. Peggy Hicks, Human Rights Watch's global advocacy director in New York, said the credibility of both U.N. bodies is at stake.

____

Associated Press reporters across Europe contributed to this story.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110225/ap_on_re_eu/libya_diplomacy

Key Libyan diplomats disown Gadhafi's regime

By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Edith M. Lederer, Associated Press – 1 hr 32 mins ago

UNITED NATIONS – Key Libyan diplomats disowned Moammar Gadhafi's regime on Monday and the country's deputy U.N. ambassador called on the longtime ruler to step down because of its bloody crackdown on protesters.

The Libyan ambassador to the United States also said he could no longer support Gadhafi, the ambassador to India planned to resign, and the ambassador to Bangladesh quit to protest the killing of family members by government troops. Almost all Libyan diplomats at the United Nations backed deputy ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi's pleas to Gadhafi to end his 40-year rule and to the international community to intervene.

The U.N. spokesperson's office said late Monday that the Security Council had scheduled consultations on the situation in Libya for Tuesday morning. Earlier, Dabbashi had called for an urgent meeting of the Security Council to take action to stop the bloodshed.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters in Beverly Hills, California, that he hopes that "the Security Council will take this matter on an urgent basis."

Ban said it was up to the Security Council to decide whether to call for some sort of "no-fly zone" over Libya to protect protesters from attacks by Libyan aircraft.

As diplomatic support for Gadhafi began to crumble, Dabbashi warned that if he doesn't leave, "the Libyan people will get rid of him."

Gadhafi's security forces unleashed the most deadly crackdown of any Arab country against the wave of protests sweeping the region, with reports Monday that demonstrators were being fired at from helicopters and warplanes. After seven days of protests and deadly clashes in Libya's eastern cities, the eruption of turmoil in the capital, Tripoli, sharply escalated the challenge to Gadhafi.

Ban expressed outrage late Monday at the reported aerial attacks and said the "violence against demonstrators must immediately stop."

"I have seen very disturbing and shocking scenes, where Libyan authorities have been firing at demonstrators from warplanes and helicopters," Ban told reporters at a hotel in Beverly Hills. "This is unacceptable. This must stop immediately. This is a serious violation of international humanitarian law."

Ban said he had spoken to Gadhafi earlier Monday for 40 minutes and "forcefully urged him to stop violence against demonstrators and again strongly underlined the importance of respecting the human rights of those demonstrators."

Libya's ambassador in Washington, Ali Adjali, told BBC World that the reports of firing from warplanes spurred his decision not to support the government any more.

"To me it is a very sad moment seeing Libyans killing other Libyans," he said. "I'm not supporting the government killing its people. ... I'm (not) resigning Moammar Gadhafi's government, but I am with the people. I am representing the people in the street, the people who've been killed, the people who've been destroyed. Their life is in danger."

Dabbashi, the deputy U.N. ambassador, also said he and the U.N. diplomats were not resigning because they served the people of Libya and not the regime.

"This is in fact a declaration of war against the Libyan people," he told reporters, surrounded by a dozen Libyan diplomats. "The regime of Gadhafi has already started the genocide against the Libyan people."

Libya's U.N. Ambassador Mohamed Shalgham was not present at Dabbashi's press conference. He told the U.N. correspondent for the pan-Arab newspaper, Al-Hayat, that all diplomats at Libya's mission supported Dabbashi "excluding me." Shalgham said he was in touch with the Gadhafi government and was trying "to persuade them to stop these acts."

Libya's ambassador to Bangladesh, A.H. Elimam, resigned to protest the killing of family members by government soldiers in Libya, said a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Dhaka. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said Elimam informed the foreign ministry about his resignation late Monday.

In New Delhi, an Indian diplomatic official told the AP that the Libyan ambassador to India intends to resign. However, as of Tuesday morning the ambassador, Ali al-Essawi, had not officially met with the foreign ministry to turn in his credentials.

Earlier, al-Essawi told the BBC he was resigning because of "massive violence against Libyan civilians." Abdel-Moneim al-Houni, who resigned Sunday as Libya's ambassador to the Arab League in Cairo, demanded that Gadhafi and his commanders and aides be put on trial for "the mass killings in Libya."

"Gadhafi's regime is now in the trash of history because he betrayed his nation and his people," al-Houni said in a statement.

A Libyan diplomat in China, Hussein el-Sadek el-Mesrati, told Al-Jazeera, "I resigned from representing the government of Mussolini and Hitler."

Libyan embassies in Tokyo and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, were closed Tuesday, according to non-diplomatic workers who answered the telephones.

Gadhafi appeared very briefly on Libyan state television early Tuesday to attempt to show he was still in charge and dispel rumors that he had fled.

Gadhafi is reportedly using mercenaries against the protesters and Dabbashi urged the international community to impose a no-flight zone "on the cities of Libya so no mercenaries, no supplies of arms will arrive to the regime."

Dabbashi also urged the international community to establish safe passage for medical supplies from neighboring Tunisia and Egypt to get across the borders to Benghazi, Libya's second-largest city, which was the scene of the heaviest fighting. By Monday, protesters had claimed control of the city, overrunning its main security headquarters.

"We also call on the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to investigate the crimes against humanity committed by Gadhafi against the Libyan people," Dabbashi told the Associated Press.

The best scenario, he said, "is to have him before the court, to prosecute him and to know from him everything about the crimes he committed before, whether it is ... the genocide he is committing now or the disappearance of certain important personalities... and all the other crimes he has committed during the 42 years in power."

Dabbashi also called on all countries to refuse entry to Gadhafi if he tries to escape and to monitor financial transactions if he tries to send money outside Libya.

Some 70 human rights groups called for immediate international action "to halt the mass atrocities now being perpetrated by the Libyan government against its own people."

The groups urged the U.N. Security Council to meet and take action to protect Libyan civilians from "crimes against humanity," and they urged the U.N. General Assembly to suspend Libya from membership on the Geneva-based Human Rights Council.

The signatories included the U.S.-based National Endowment for Democracy, Physicians for Human Rights, Geneva-based UN Watch, and groups from many other countries including South Africa, Switzerland, India, Nigeria, Germany, Pakistan, Venezuela and Britain.

___

Associated Press writers Anita Snow at the United Nations and Raquel Maria Dillon in Beverly Hills, California, contributed to this report.

(This version CORRECTS Corrects that Ban spoke in Beverly Hills instead of Los Angeles. Upgrades attribution to reflect that AP reporter was at Ban event. Security Council to hold consultations at 9 a.m. (1400 GMT) Tuesday. For global distribution.)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110222/ap_on_re_us/libya_diplomacy

UN: Egyptian stability important for Mideast peace

AP – UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon sits in the auditorium prior delivering a speech on the 'United Nations …

By DAVID RISING, Associated Press David Rising, Associated Press – Sun Feb 6, 5:35 am ET

MUNICH – U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Sunday he was concerned that the unrest in Egypt could have "serious implications" for the Middle East peace process.

Ban, who was in Munich for an annual security conference, told a small group of reporters at his hotel that President Hosni Mubarak and the Egyptian government have been key in the negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel.

"This is why we are concerned," he said.

"Egypt has been playing a very strategic role in the Mideastern peace process; President Mubarak was one of the key players in trying to facilitate reconciliation."

Mubarak has said he won't seek another term in office but demonstrators are demanding that he go now.

On Saturday Ban met with the so-called Quartet of Mideast peacemakers — the U.N., the U.S. the EU and Russia — on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

The group said in a statement that in view of the developments in the Mideast, "further delay in the resumption of negotiations is detrimental to the prospects for regional peace and security."

Frank Wisner, a U.S. envoy who met with Mubarak over the past week, told the conference Saturday that the Egyptian president's leadership remains crucial for now, as the country heads into a transition to democracy.

Ban would not say whether he thought Mubarak should stay on at the moment — saying that was up to the Egyptian people — but did say the U.N. is concerned that any move to a new government is a smooth one.

"We would like to see a transition take place in an orderly and peaceful manner without having any negative sudden impact on the overall peace and stability in this region," he said.

Heading in to the conference, EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger told Associated Press Television News that he expects the turmoil in the Middle East to cause a rise of energy prices, but that he does not fear a rapid spike.

"I believe that all responsible, the traders and supplying countries, will do everything to ensure stable oil supplies, especially at this time of year, "he said.

He added that he expects that the Suez Canal will remain open, but also said it is not the only transport route available.

"It is possible to detour around it," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110206/ap_on_re_eu/eu_germany_security_conference_egypt

Malaysia under fire at UN over refugees

Agence France-Presse - 2/11/2009 5:49 PM GMT

Malaysia under fire at UN over refugees

Malaysia was taken to task by some Western countries on Wednesday over its treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, during a United Nations review of its human rights record.

Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands were among the nations that expressed "concerns" surrounding refugees and asylum-seekers held in detention in Malaysia, as they called on Kuala Lumpur to develop legislation that distinguishes asylum seekers from irregular migrants.

"We note serious problems faced by refugees, migrants and asylum seekers in Malaysia... that is linked to a lack of clarity on their status in the country," Belgium's representative told the UN Human Rights Council during a universal periodic review session.

Under universal periodic review, all 192 member states of the United Nations have their human rights record vetted by the council once every four years.

The session is based on three reports, one submitted by the country under review, and two summaries compiled by the UN Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights.

The high commissioner's report noted the lack of national legislation on refugees as well as absence of laws on the rights of migrant workers.

In addition, it said, "many asylum seeking and refugee children, among them Muslim children from a nearby country, including the Rohingya refugee children who had lived in Malaysia since 1990s, lacked access to formal education."

The secretary general of Malaysia's foreign ministry Rastam Mohd Isa said in his opening remarks that Malaysia prosecutes only refugees who have committed crimes.

Foreign workers are accorded the same rights as local workers, and the rights of illegal immigrants are protected, he added.

Human rights groups have accused Malaysia of mistreating millions of foreign workers who live there, as well as asylum-seekers, including thousands from nearby Myanmar, which is under military rule.

Human Rights Watch had singled out a government-backed volunteer force in Malaysia known as RELA for allegedly beating, threatening and extorting money from migrants and asylum-seekers.

During Wednesday's session, some countries, including Chile and France, encouraged Malaysia to eliminate discrimination due to sexual orientation and to "respect the human rights of all individuals, including homosexuals."

http://news.my.msn.com/regional/article.aspx?cp-documentid=2463537