English 
Malay By: Cso Platform For Reform – Child Cluster
Organisation/ Individual: Child Rights Coalition Malaysia (CRCM)
Policy Code: 2e Child
Problem Statement and Current Policy:
1. Despite Malaysia’s ratification of CRC, CEDAW and the existence of Child Act 2001, SOACA, Domestic Violence Act 1994, anti-trafficking and labour laws to protect children, refugee children continue to experience discriminatory access to national child protection systems and services, including education, healthcare systems and vaccinations. 2. Refugee children face arrest, detention, deportation, abuse, neglect, exploitation including child marriage, statutory rape, online crimes, poverty and mental health issues. 3. Poor community structures, harmful traditional practices and limited service providers availing services to this population exacerbate the vulnerabilities of refugee children. 4. During the Covid-19 crisis, refugee children experienced xenophobia, unsafe care arrangements, constraints with livelihood, food aid and accessing helplines due to their illegal status, language barrier and poor awareness on refugee issues.
Value(s) and Belief:
Include refugee children in national action plans, programmes and services on child protection prevention and response. Allow them non-discriminatory access to Child Protectors and Assistants, D11, national education and healthcare including SCAN, psychosocial, welfare, comprehensive sexuality education and services, justice, case management and income generating activities for their families.
Proposal of Solution and Call for Action:
1. Ratify the 1951 Refugee Convention Relating and 1967 Protocol, withdraw all reservations to the CRC (Article 2 and 37), harmonize Immigration Act with Child Act 2001, SOACA and anti-trafficking laws, CRC (Article 22), CEDAW to prevent immigration offences, arrest, detention and deportation of refugee. 2. Amplify evidence-based and action-oriented research on refugee children 3. Provide alternatives to detention, particularly non-institutionalised care for all children including refugees and their families. 4. Institutionalise dialogues, regular awareness raising and capacity building on refugee issues, relevant laws and policies, best interest procedure and determination, confidential reporting mechanisms with all stakeholders to maximize resources, enable fair access, strengthen quality of services and ensure perpetrators are convicted and punished. 5. Avail interpretation services and child friendly, gender sensitive, culturally appropriate information, education and communication materials in refugee languages on protection and support services. 6. Establish an interagency disaggregated data collection mechanism on refugee children with police, JKM, hospitals, NGOs, UN agencies, schools, community-based organisations and learning centres. 7. Include refugee children in child parliament or child participation groups to nurture their participation in programming and policymaking processes and decisions.
Additional information:
1. 2019 CRCM Status Report 2. Refugee children at risk cases include unaccompanied and separated children. 3. Relevant bodies and stakeholders include immigration, judicial officers, prosecutors, enforcement bodies, medical authorities including SCAN and OSCC staff, child protectors, social workers, teachers, school staff, NGOs, religious authorities, refugee children, their families and communities.