A group of Acehnese refugees are believed to have been detained in a police lock-up in Penang following a raid at their work places yesterday.

According to Penang Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) coordinator Choo Chon Kai, about 40 police officers raided a migrant community at Kampung Sungai Nibong Kecil, Bukit Jambul at about 7pm.

Choo said some of them were arrested at a food stall near where they were staying and that four houses inside the village were raided.

"All of them are men, and four are believed to be holding refugee status documents issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)," he added.

Choo said sources told him that 33 Acehnese and six Javanese were arrested during the raid.

He said they were kept in the lock-up at the Southwest Police District Office.

"They would most probably be sent to the Immigration department camp in the Langkap detention centre in Perak, opposite Aceh across the narrow Malacca Straits, awaiting deportation." Choo added, claiming the information was from a police source.

Hard line

Investigation officer Chief Inspector Ahmad Adnan Basri could not be contacted for comments today.

The Malaysian government has taken a hard line recently against a bid for refugee status by Indonesians from the war-torn Aceh province, saying that allowing them in could spark a flood of illegal immigrants.

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar rejected criticism from the UNHCR over the arrests of more than 200 Acehnese, including women and children, outside the UN agency's office in Kuala Lumpur last month.

He charged instead that "it is not right for UNHCR to register the Acehnese as possible refugees when they are not refugees."

The UNHCR has urged Malaysia to free them and issue them with temporary protection letters.