Second Asia-Pacific Regional Review of Implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM)

From 4-6 February, APRRN members and Co-Secretary General, Klaus, attended the second Asia-Pacific regional review of the implementation of the GCM in Bangkok. The meeting brought member states and stakeholders to take stock of progress and discuss barriers and opportunities for improved regional migration governance. For more information, please visit this website

 

APRRN member, the International Detention Coalition  (IDC)) hosted a side event: Promising Practices and Peer Learning: Alternatives to Immigration Detention in the Asia Pacific within the Framework of the GCM and GCR.

 

APRRN also co-hosted a side event with the Asia Pacific Mission on Migrants (APMM): Advocating Grassroots Migrants’ and Refugees’ Participation in the GCM, Spotlighting Migrant and Refugee Indicators in the GCM. Watch the Recording Here

 

Please also find a statement by APRRN's partner, the Asia Displacement Solutions Platform: HERE

 

Members Spotlight!

Over the past 15 years, Health Equity Initiatives (HEI) in Malaysia has committed to building a world where everyone is entitled to enjoy the highest attainable standard of health. Since 2007, HEI has provided community-based mental health programs for refugees and asylum seekers, which include prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation. Long-term objectives include advancing the right to health of marginalized communities and strengthening marginalized communities to enable them to become more effective in promoting their right to health through interventions, advocacy, and policy making at the community, national,l and international levels.

 

ACTIONS AND NEWS FROM MEMBERS

Nino Viartasiwi & Antje Missbach: Will Pekanbaru become Indonesia’s Cox’s Bazar? Despite a reluctant reception from locals and diminishing humanitarian support from international donors, there are indications at the beginning of 2025 that some Rohingya are in Indonesia for the long haul.

 

APRRN member Muzafar Ali of Cisarua Learning Ltd. will go on a RIDE FOR EDUCATION, riding 4,000 km on bike, from Maleny/Queensland to Adelaide/South Australia in June this year, to raise funds for the education of refugees and women in Afghanistan.    

 

Sabber Kyaw Min’s article published in The Wire was written in memory of the remarkable Tapan Kumar Bose, who recently passed away. Bose was a renowned documentary filmmaker, human rights advocate, and peace activist, widely respected across South Asia.  

 

Hold Officials Accountable for Forced Return of Uyghur Refugees to China 

“Forcibly returning Uyghur refugees to China, where they face persecution and genocide, is a horrendous violation of international and domestic law,” said Matthew Smith, Chief Executive Officer at Fortify Rights. “Thai officials must be held accountable under the anti-torture law for their role in these returns.”

 

“SEEKING SAFETY IS NOT A CRIME, IT IS A FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT.”

“The Harmful Rhetoric and Political Game Against Refugees and People Seeking Asylum Must Stop,” Zaki Haidari, APRRN Chair of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Working Group and the Refugee Rights Campaigner, Amnesty International Australia.

 

The Centre for Policy Development and the International Detention Coalition (IDC) hosted the eighth Alternatives to Detention Peer Learning Platform meeting in Australia. Bringing together 35 policymakers from Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Thailand, as well as experts from civil society, academia, and international organisations, the platform helps governments to implement policies to end the immigration detention of children.

 

Chawaratt (Mic) Chawarangkul shared his reflections on Global Commitments, Local Actions: Thailand’s Model for Alternatives to Detention.

 

International Catholic Migration Commission, New Oceania Network to Support Migrants and Refugees created. The network aims to unify, address urgent challenges, and elevate regional voices through advocacy and collaboration, raising the voice of the region at international levels, sharing information, skills, resources and practices, and connecting the smaller Pacific Island countries and dioceses through the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) and the Dicastery for Integral Human Development at the Holy See.    

 

SHARP-Pakistan reports that the situation of Afghan refugees in Pakistan is very fragile right now. In the last one month, some 980 Afghans have been forcibly deported, and the authorities have started a crackdown against refugees in the capital city Islamabad and the adjacent city Rawalpindi, where registered refugees are warned to vacate this area by 31st March, and undocumented refugees are arrested and detained for deportation. Some 40000 refugees are the target of the government till 31 March to be moved from these two districts. It has also planned to further expand the deportation in other areas of Pakistan later on. On June 30th, the POR cards will expire, and it is believed that the extension will be delayed to force them to leave. 

 

International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM20) Conference 2025: Forced Displacement in an Urbanizing World, a number of virtual/hybrid panels on RDI UREF's Youtube Channel. See IASFM20 Virtual Panel Playlist.

 

News from the region

Afghanistan:

UNHCR - Afghan Returns | Weekly Update 23 February – 1 March 2025.

 

Hundreds of Afghan refugees deported from Pakistan and Iran. The return of the refugees amidst the rising food crisis and instability in Afghanistan will further add to their dilemma.

 

 

U.S. Senators Warn Trump’s Immigration Policies Endanger Afghan Allies.

 

 

Refugees in a Deadlock: From Discrimination in Afghanistan to Cruelty in Neighboring Countries.

 

The US deports nearly 120 migrants of different nationalities. The first flight from the U.S., carrying people from Afghanistan and several other countries, arrived on Wednesday, with two more flights expected soon. In total, the U.S. will send 360 people to Panama on these three flights.                      

 

Deportation threats for Afghans in Iran and Pakistan: Afghanistan’s acting minister of refugees and repatriation has urged neighbouring countries to halt the deportation of Afghan nationals. Mawlai Abdul Kabir’s call came after both Iran and Pakistan made public declarations that they planned to send potentially millions of Afghans home. In September, Tehran announced a scheme to deport up to two million Afghans within a six-month period. Pakistan has also said that any Afghan national waiting to be relocated to a third country from the capital Islamabad, or the twin city of Rawalpindi, must be evacuated by foreign missions by 31 March, or face deportation back to Afghanistan.

 

IRAN:

Important Announcement on Extension of Registration for Amayesh 18 and Hoviat 17 cards.

 

Iran’s Interior Minister says over one million Afghan refugees deported.

 

Authorities in Iran’s Semnan province detained 72 Afghans and sent them to deportation centres as part of the national crackdown on undocumented foreigners. The district police chief also urged Iranians to use police emergency hotlines to report suspected migrants.

 

Pakistan:

Pakistani authorities have released 63 Afghan migrants from detention and deported them back to Afghanistan, the Taliban-run Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said on Thursday.

 

Afghan Refugees in Pakistan Face Expulsion as UN Calls for Protection.

 

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reportedly plans to deport Afghan refugees awaiting relocation to third countries if they are not removed from Islamabad and Rawalpindi by 31 March. Thousands of Afghans approved for resettlement to the US, who fled to Pakistan when the Taliban took control of their country in 2021, are now in limbo after President Trump halted the US refugee resettlement program last month. 

    

Afghan Refugees in Pakistan Face Expulsion as UN Calls for Protection, Thousands of Afghan refugees in Pakistan face potential deportation as global organizations, including UN agencies, urge the Pakistani government to reconsider its policy. Many of those at risk include human rights activists, journalists, and musicians who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban took control in 2021. UNHCR and IOM called on Pakistan to ensure legal protection for those with valid documentation and to uphold international human rights standards. 

 

With the Constitutional Bench set to resume the hearing of a petition against the mass deportation of Afghans, the federal government has assured the Supreme Court that the validity of the PoR cards issued to the registered refugees had been extended until June 30.

 

Rights groups urge Pakistan to stop expelling Afghan migrants, The open letter states: “Many Afghan men and women, particularly human rights defenders and activists, have fled due to violence, harassment, political repression, and honor killings,”. Organizations argue that “forced migration, detention, exorbitant visa costs, and the imminent mass expulsion” are placing immense pressure on Afghan migrants. Pakistan has set a March 31 deadline for Afghan migrants awaiting resettlement in countries such as the United States, Germany, Australia, France, and Britain to leave the country voluntarily—or face forced expulsion. 

 

Pakistan has expelled over 825,600 Afghan nationals since September 2023.

 

Indonesia:

UNHCR Fact sheets for 2024 are online.

 

Turned away by Australia and rejected by Trump, these refugees have been living in limbo for 12 years. Following President Donald Trump's order to freeze the United States' refugee program, some advocates are asking the Australian government to lift its ban on resettling refugees from Indonesia.

 

Rohingya refugee influx raises concern for conflict. Experts have urged better government communication and diplomatic efforts to cool simmering tensions among local communities over the recent arrival in Aceh of Rohingya refugees, a predominantly Muslim minority ethnic group fleeing state-sanctioned discrimination in Myanmar.

 

The longitudinal relationship between psychological symptoms and social functioning in displaced refugees Research with refugees residing in long term transit in Indonesia published: key findings include - Mental health supports = improved social functioning and community cohesion / Greater sense of social responsibility can increase MH symptoms / Positive social support and community connection was good for mental health ... support for mental wellbeing and positive social support is important for fostering social cohesion and coping for refugees in transit countries like Indonesia.

 

Thailand:

Lawyers Council of Thailand Takes Case of Myanmar National Tortured to Death by Thai Soldiers:

The Lawyers Council of Thailand under the Royal Patronage has taken up the case of Aung Ko Ko, a 37-year-old Myanmar national who died after being detained and brutally tortured by Thai soldiers in January 2024, Fortify Rights announced today. At a press conference in Bangkok, the Lawyers Council of Thailand confirmed its involvement in the case alongside Fortify Rights, which formally submitted a complaint to the Lawyers Council, urging action.

 

Victim’s Family Demands Justice in Case of Fatal Torture in Thailand:

It has been more than one year since the body of Myanmar national Aung Ko Ko was found in Mae Sot District, Thailand. On February 13, 2025, Fortify Rights submitted a complaint with the Lawyers Council of Thailand Under the Royal Patronage to initiate an investigation into his death. Thai authorities should conduct a thorough, prompt, and impartial investigation into the involvement of Thai Army soldiers in the torture and killing of Aung Ko Ko.

 

Seven refugee camps on the Thailand-Myanmar border are running out of essential supplies and food following US President Donald Trump’s freeze on foreign aid. Meanwhile, Trump’s suspension of refugee resettlements has halted a 2023 agreement between the US and Thailand to resettle thousands of Myanmar refugees from the camps to the US, according to a senior Thai official.

 

Trump’s closure of USAID sends chills through Southeast Asia, NGOs across Southeast Asia say they will struggle to continue their work without US funding.

 

Burmese refugee dies after discharge from shut US-funded clinic, says family.

 

Some 40 Uyghur asylum seekers were deported to China by Thai authorities after more than ten years in detention in Thailand. The deportations were condemned by UNHCR, who described the move as a ‘clear violation of the principle of non-refoulement’, and by rights groups and foreign governments, including the US and the UK.

 

 

HRW, Thailand: 40 Uyghurs Forcibly Sent to China, Beijing Should Allow UN, Families Immediate Access to Returnees.

 

The Diplomat, Thailand has ignored international pleas for mercy and secretly deported at least 40 Uyghurs to China, prompting an angry response from Washington and accusations that Bangkok has bowed to pressure from Beijing. Their deportation, after 11 years of “inhumane” detention in the Thai capital, dashed their hopes for political asylum and a fresh life abroad. It was also a major embarrassment for Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who had previously promised to adhere to international human rights law.  

 

Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and the UN have condemned the decision.

 

Malaysia:

Sharuna Verghis, co-founder of APRRN member Health Equity Initiatives (HEI), shares her journey as a public health researcher, educator, and advocate for migrant and refugee health and discusses the urgent mental health needs of refugees in Malaysia and the devastating impact of funding freezes due to recent executive orders in this new podcast.

 

Refugees can now use Touch ‘n Go e-wallet - financial technology is essential in driving inclusion, particularly to support refugees living in Malaysia.

 

International Crisis Group, MAPPING CONFLICT | The Arakan Army’s war in western Myanmar, Thomas Kean explains the challenges the Arakan Army will face in governing its new territory, the impact of the fighting on civilians, and how the conflict has changed Bangladesh and China’s engagement with Myanmar. 

 

India:

‘Criminalised for politics’: Rohingya caught in Delhi election crossfire: Incumbent AAP and challenger BJP ‘outdo’ each other in attacking the mainly Muslim refugees to consolidate votes in the February 5 election.

 

A flight carrying 104 Indian nationals deported from the US arrived in India’s Punjab state. A spokesperson for India’s foreign ministry said India and the US are cooperating to deter illegal migration while creating more pathways for legal migration from India to the US.

 

Documentary film: Rohingya refugees in Jammu: Struggle, security fears, survival.

 

No child will be discriminated against in education, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday, while fixing for next week a plea seeking a direction to the Centre and the Delhi governments to grant Rohingya refugees in the city access to public schools and hospitals.

 

Finding a Way Out of Festering Conflict in India’s Manipur.

 

Myanmar:

Junta airstrikes killed over 170 people across Myanmar in January, a fourfold increase on the previous month, according to analysis by The Irrawaddy. The strikes hit villages, health facilities, a prison, and a gold mine in various resistance-held areas, though most of those killed were civilians. More than 1,800 people have been killed by airstrikes since the 2021 coup.

 

For Myanmar’s war victims and Rohingya refugees, US aid cuts are disastrous, “Many humanitarian projects have already been suspended, and humanitarian groups are letting go of staff in droves.”

 

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk: Update on the human rights situation in Myanmar / 58th session of the Human Rights Council, see video recording.

 

Bangladesh:

Aid workers in Bangladesh reported the 90-day freeze on US aid is threatening critical services in Rohingya refugee camps, despite a previous statement from interim leader Muhammad Yunus that US funding for refugees in Bangladesh would be maintained. Refugees and humanitarian workers said several hospitals in the camps have been closed and reported potential impacts to health, water, sanitation, and hygiene programs.

 

EU boosts humanitarian aid in Bangladesh, Myanmar and for the Rohingya refugee crisis.

 

Visit of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to Bangladesh, scheduled from March 13 to 16, 2025.

 

Japan:

Japan government eyes extending stays of pregnant skilled foreign workers.

 

Rohingya woman helping community members to adapt to life in Japan.

 

Australia:  

Justice at last for children detained on Nauru, says Refugee Advice & Casework Service. After a nine-year battle, the UN found Australia violated the human rights of refugee children detained in Nauru.

 

‘Majority of Australian voters expect fair and humane approach to refugees, poll shows’, Exclusive: Research in lead-up to federal election shows more than half of those surveyed want asylum seekers to have more rights while they await visa decisions.

 

‘Voters' attitudes to refugees revealed in fresh polling’, Australians want refugees and asylum seekers to be treated with compassion, as the major parties are warned against taking their eyes off the cost of living at the upcoming federal election.

 

Young refugees freed from Australian detention are then trapped by bridging visas that ban them from studying, deepening the damage inflicted by the immigration regime. Refugees released from detention denied tertiary education.

 

 

The human rights commissioner raises concerns about the NZYQ Nauru resettlement decision.

 

OTHER:

The Women’s Refugee Commission statement: The Trump Administration’s Sudden Freeze of Foreign Assistance Will Have Lifelong Consequences For Displaced Women And Girls.

 

Freeze to US aid hits Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar hard.

 

The UN reported more than 825,000 internally displaced Syrians have returned to their home regions since December 2024. However, returns from displaced persons camps in the country reman limited, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), with about 80,000 people leaving camps in Syria’s northwest since December.

Reports & Publications

Preliminary Findings from ICVA Survey on impact on humanitarian aid, local partners and NGOs.

 

‘Living in a world of ambivalence’: The complexity of home in exile is published in the Journal of Refugee Studies. The paper reveals four dilemmas: longing for home while confronting pain, losing a sense of belonging, mourning what’s gone, and the tension between connection and disconnection. Drawing on personal experiences and interviews, it offers a deeply human look at how forced migration reshapes what 'home' means.

 

Special issue on breaking down barriers: Journal of Refugee Studies. What role for law in refugee studies? Towards a transdisciplinary agenda

 

International Refugee Assistance Project, published an explainer on US Executive orders and ‘What does the new US refugee resettlement ‘pause’ mean for me?’

 

Kaldor Centre and UNHCR published a practical toolkit and briefings on International protection claims involving climate change and disasters to guide lawyers and decision-makers faced with refugee claims involving the impacts of climate change or disasters, including case law from around the world.

 

University of New South Wales new report -  Countering misinformation about refugees and migrants: An evidence-based framework helps to unpack the psychological drivers of misinformation and how we can disrupt harmful narratives and create a more informed, constructive conversation on migration. Read the full article here and the full report here.

 

The Sisterhood Booklets on Women’s Health: Find information on menstruation, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and menopause.

Call for Nominations: UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award. Deadline: 7 April 2025

 

Legal Needs and Resources: If your organization has any legal needs related to the recent US policy changes, reach out to PILnet to explore a match with free legal assistance available, and fill in the legal assistance intake form

 

Funding opportunities

CFAs: Rotary Peace Centers Fellowship Program is pleased to announce its Rotary Peace Centers Fellowship Program to develop the capacity of peace and development professionals to become effective catalysts for peace. Deadline: 15 May 2025

 

DFAT: Australia Awards Scholarship (Philippines )to help promote prosperity, reduce poverty, and enhance political stability. Deadline: 30 April 2025

 

DFAT Call for Applications: Australia Awards Scholarships in Thailand, for study and research, recipients develop the skills and knowledge to drive change and help build enduring people-to-people links with Australia.

 

Gerda Henkel Foundation has initiated the Special Program “Forced Migration” to bring into conversation several disciplinary, methodological and epistemological perspectives on forced migration, and to build on the promising approaches and developments of global research while responding to the existing desiderata in related scholarship. Contact: Oleg Golberg - oleg.golberg@gerda-henkel-stiftung.de   Core areas of research:

1) Forced-migration infrastructures
2) South-South (im)mobilities
3) Multiple displacements
4) Displaced people’s agency
5) Gender and intersectionality
6) (Supra-)state influences on displacement processes

Deadline: 5 May 2025

 

The Rapid Response Window of the United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) was launched in 2020 to address the urgent funding gaps and dismantle barriers that women often face in meaningfully engaging and influencing peace processes and the implementation of peace agreements worldwide. It provides flexible funding and support for strategic, short-term, and urgent initiatives led by women peacebuilders and local women’s rights organizations to increase women’s meaningful influence on national, regional and international peace processes at a range of different stages.

 

CFAs: Rotary Peace Centers Fellowship Program is pleased to announce its Rotary Peace Centers Fellowship Program to develop the capacity of peace and development professionals to become effective catalysts for peace. Deadline: 15 May 2025

 

NEAR has opened the Bridge Funding Window within the Change Fund. These flexible grants will specifically focus on support for impacted NEAR members affected by the U.S. Foreign Funding Freeze.    

 

Spencer Foundation: Small Research Grants on Education Program, to support rigorous, intellectually ambitious and technically sound research that is relevant to the most pressing questions and compelling opportunities in education. Deadline: 16 April 2025

 

European Commission (EC): Upholding Human Rights Standards in the Criminal Justice System of Pakistan. Area: Children, Human Rights, Minorities, Women & Gender. Deadline: 16 April 2025

 

European Commission (EC): Promoting Gender Equality and Youth Empowerment in Pakistan to promote Gender Equality and Youth Empowerment. Deadline: 9 April 2025

 

Taiwan Foundation for Democracy: 2025 Domestic Grants Program in Taiwan to encourage academic institutions, think tanks, non-governmental organizations (excluding for-profit organizations), and other relevant organizations to promote activities related to democracy and human rights. Deadline: 15 April 2025

 

 

The Foreign Aid Bridge Fund, Unlock Aid, is A new rapid response initiative to support organizations affected by the U.S. foreign aid freeze. This isn't a long-term funding source but rather an emergency bridge to prevent the collapse of critical programs and services. To be considered for emergency funding, applicants must meet rigorous criteria: 1. Demonstrated track record of delivering high-impact, cost-effective solutions, 2. Direct impact from U.S. foreign aid stop work orders, 3. Commitment to transparency and rigorous results reporting, 4. Direct work with communities rather than acting as intermediaries, 5. Sustainable revenue models, 6. Providing vital services in essential sectors like health, water, agriculture, education, livelihoods, and humanitarian response. Lastly, organizations must outline a sustainable funding strategy. Learn more and submit an initial intake form here.

 

UNESCO-Japan Prize on Education for Sustainable Development. Deadline: 18 April 2025

 

AVPN, CapitaLand Community Resilience Initiative ( China, India, Singapore, Viet Nam ), an SGD 3 million initiative dedicated to strengthening community resilience across Asia. Deadline: 25 April 2025