KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 -- Malaysia is home to over 215,000 refugees and asylum seekers.

According to the latest United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees report, the breakdown of the refugee population reveals that the vast majority are from Myanmar, making up approximately 88 per cent of the total. This includes 193,824 Rohingya, 15,774 Chin, and 33,002 other ethnic minorities.

However, Malaysia not being a signatory of the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol leaves this vulnerable community in a legal grey area.

This discrepancy between the country's legal framework and the reality of its refugee population leaves many individuals in a shaky, vulnerable position, subject to the harsh realities of living as an "illegal imm...