The Rohingya are one of the world's most persecuted and stateless peoples. They were forced to flee to many countries because of genocide, violence, mass killings, and the burning of their homes and belongings. Today, the majority of the Rohingya have taken shelter in neighbouring countries, especially Bangladesh which currently hosts over one million of them.
"We are struggling to gain recognition in the land where we were born. Our demands are our denied citizenship rights and the right to return to our original homeland. Instead, we are facing widespread hate speech everywhere," said Khin Khin Nu, a female citizen journalist from Myanmar.
Over the past few decades, the Myanmar military has launched several hate campaigns and propaganda against the Rohingya. This campaign spread throughout the country, and civilians used slurs such as "Bengali," "kalar," "dogs," and many other dehumanizing terms.
I have witnessed a similarly alarming rise in online hate campaigns targeting the Rohingya in Malaysia. What concerns me most is not criticism based on evidence, but the normalization of collective hatred built on misinformation, stereotypes, and false narratives.
For the past two months, I have spent a great deal of time arguing and responding to comments from many Malaysians on Facebook. I always ask the same simple question: What have the Rohingya, as a community, done to deserve this level of hatred? Please provide solid evidence.
Most of the answers I receive are that some Rohingya spit betel nut saliva, throw garbage on the streets, beg in public, or have poor manners. But this is a traumatized community that has grown up under genocide, repeated oppression, without proper education, and without the opportunity to grow up in stable families with proper parenting.
Even if such incidents happen, how can they justify hatred against an entire ethnic community? Every society has individuals who behave poorly. We do not judge millions of people by the actions of a few.
One of the most common misconceptions is that Malaysia financially supports the Rohingya. This is simply not true. Refugees registered with UNHCR receive refugee documentation from the agency, and UNHCR covers part of certain medical expenses.
The rest of their lives -- including rent, food, clothing, education, transportation, and most healthcare costs -- are paid for by the refugees themselves. They survive through their own hard work, often in difficult and low-paid jobs.
Malaysia has welcomed migrant workers from many countries to contribute to its economy, and many Rohingya are also part of that workforce. They are not asking the Malaysian government to provide them with a comfortable life or special rights. They simply want the opportunity to earn an honest living while waiting for a durable solution, whether that is returning to their homeland, resettlement in a third country, or at least access to basic education.
Many Rohingya have already been resettled in countries such as Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Those who remain in Malaysia are not there because they want to settle permanently. Most are simply waiting for the opportunity to rebuild their lives elsewhere through legal resettlement.
In an interview with DVB News, Rohingya activist Farooq said:
"We fled from genocide. We are not coming here (Malaysia) to take over jobs, take land, or demand rights. We are here just to survive and stay safe."
But today, many Malaysians are being presented with a very different image through organized online hate campaigns. False information has played a major role in fueling public hostility.
In Kuala Lumpur, there have reportedly been cases where people from Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, and other countries pretended to be Rohingya in the hope of obtaining refugee resettlement opportunities. Yet when these individuals are involved in misconduct, the blame is often placed on the entire Rohingya community.
There have also been cases where people from other countries falsely identified themselves as Rohingya and married Malay women. After obtaining property or financial benefits, they reportedly returned to their own countries. But the Rohingya do not have a country to return to. They cannot simply go back because they have no recognized nationality, passport, or visa. Many people fail to understand this important difference.
I have also seen AI-generated posters and misleading social media posts portraying the Rohingya as criminals. Such content is designed to provoke anger rather than encourage understanding. If an individual commits a crime, that person should be held accountable. Justice should always be individual, never collective.
From what I have observed online, many of the people actively participating in these hate campaigns identify themselves as Malaysians, but they are not ethnic Malays. Many appear to come from Indian, Indonesian, Rakhine, Nepali, Sri Lankan, Filipino, or other backgrounds.
I have also seen the word "kalar" being used in posters circulating in Malaysia. This slur has been widely used in Myanmar for decades by some Burmese and Rakhine people against the Rohingya. Seeing the same language appear in Malaysian hate campaigns raises serious concerns that Burmese and Rakhine actors may also be involved.
Regardless of who is involved, organized hate speech against an entire refugee community is unacceptable.
Criticism based on facts is legitimate. Every community has individuals who break the law, and they should face justice. But blaming an entire ethnic group for the actions of a few is discrimination, not accountability.
The Rohingya have already lost their homes, their citizenship, and their basic rights. They should not also become the targets of organized hatred based on misinformation. They are victims of an ongoing genocide and persecution and deserve stronger protection and security measures from the international community and the United Nations.
I respectfully call on the international community and Meta to investigate the widespread online hate speech directed at the Rohingya and to enforce its community standards consistently. At the same time, I encourage everyone to verify information before sharing it. Facts should guide our opinions -- not prejudice, misinformation, or collective blame.
We do not want to live as refugees, asylum seekers, or displaced people forever. Let us return to our homeland with our citizenship and rights. Otherwise, if the world has no place for us, then throw us into the Pacific Ocean altogether.
Ahtaram Shin is a Rohingya independent journalist and freelancer.