A delegation of high-ranking officials from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) headquarters in Geneva will meet Malaysian officials on Thursday to discuss the issue of asylum seekers.

Due here tomorrow, the delegation includes UNHCR Director for International Protection Erica Feller, director of the agency's Asia-Pacific Bureau Jean-Marie Fakhouri and Southeast Asia regional representative Robert Ashe.

UNHCR representative in Malaysia Lowell Martin said today the officials will hold two-day talks with various government agencies, particularly in relation to the recent arrest and deportation of a number of Acehnese asylum seekers.

"They will be discussing a variety of asylum issues and also the situation of the 175 persons (from Aceh and Burma) who have registered for asylum with the UNHCR," he said when met at a conference organised by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) in Kuala Lumpur.

Martin said the government had agreed not to take further action against the asylum seekers pending discussions with the Geneva delegation.

No access

More than 200 people were arrested on Aug 19 as they approached the UNHCR office in Kuala Lumpur to register for asylum.

As of yesterday, 66 were deported after agreeing to return to Aceh voluntarily.

The mission has also taken an increased urgency following the deportation of seven asylum seekers registered with the agency last Friday despite a request from High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers for a moratorium a day earlier.

During a press briefing in Geneva on the same day, UNHCR spokesperson Rupert Colville expressed "extreme concern" over the news and renewed the appeal for Malaysia to work with the agency.

"Our office in Kuala Lumpur reported that seven people were deported this morning by boat from Malaysia's Perak state. Although we tried, the UNHCR was not given access to the seven, all of whom had been interviewed two weeks ago and who had expressed a desire to seek asylum.

"The deportation is most unfortunate, particularly coming shortly in advance of a high-level mission ... to discuss ways in which this specific issue can be addressed in a way which meets protection needs," he said.

Meanwhile, human rights watchdog Amnesty International also expressed its "grave concern" for the safety of the Acehnese asylum seekers who face imminent deportation.

"To deport these individuals without determining their refugee status would be a violation of both the spirit and letter of international law. To return them there without due process would be a violation of the most fundamental obligation of international refugee protection," the organisation said in a press statement.

Amnesty also urged the government to allow UNHCR full access to the detainees in view of concerns over the detentions and the conditions of the detention of the Acehnese.

'Harbouring' Acehnese

Commenting on this, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Dr Rais Yatim said although the government is in discussion with UNHCR, it cannot be seen as "harbouring" the Acehnese.

"Malaysia and Indonesia are working on a fruitful dialogue on Aceh. However, I am not in the position to say the outcome," said the minister when met at the Suhakam conference.

The fate of Acehnese asylum seekers was among the topics raised at a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri in Kuching late last month.

Mahathir had ruled out the possibility of Malaysia granting asylum or special treatment to the Acehnese despite an earlier assurance by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi that a temporary stay may be considered.

The hardline stance could be due to the increasing pressure from Indonesia for Malaysia not to harbour any dissidents from the war-torn Aceh province.

In July, Kuala Lumpur was put in a spot when Free Aceh Movement (Gam) spokesperson Sofyan Daud claimed to have travelled to Malaysia from Jakarta but this had not been independently confirmed.