USCIRF Factsheet: The Responsibility of Host Countries to Protect Refugees Fleeing Religious Persecution - Faith & Freedom News

Refugee Crisis in South and Southeast Asia

As the global refugee population continues to surge, more than two-thirds of the 43 million refugees worldwide remain in neighboring countries. Cases across South and Southeast Asia reveal mounting tensions surrounding vulnerable displaced populations fleeing religious persecution, with critical implications for regional security and human rights.

43M

Global Refugees

122M

Forcibly Displaced

Increase (Last Decade)

Key Crisis Points

🇹🇭 Thailand: Uyghur Deportations

In February 2025, Thai authorities forcibly deported 40 Uyghur refugees back to China’s Xinjiang region despite offers from the US and Canada to resettle them

Five Uyghurs reportedly died in immigration detention under inhumane conditions

Over 1,500 Vietnamese refugees, including Hmong and Montagnard Christians, face similar threats

Thousands of Pakistani Christians and Ahmadiyya Muslims live in fear of deportation

🇵🇰 Pakistan: Afghan Mass Deportations

1.4 million Afghan refugees currently reside in Pakistan

Over 1 million Afghans returned since September 2023, many forcibly

Pakistan forcibly returned over 300,000 Afghans in 2025 alone

Religious minorities including Christians, Shi’a Muslims, Ahmadiyya Muslims, and Sikhs face persecution if returned to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan

🇧🇩 Bangladesh: Rohingya Crisis

Nearly 1 million predominantly Muslim Rohingya refugees live in Cox’s Bazar, the world’s largest refugee camp

In May 2025, over 400 Rohingya died when a ship capsized as they attempted to flee

Armed insurgent groups are recruiting refugees amid deteriorating security conditions

US assistance cuts in 2025 have worsened food shortages and humanitarian conditions

🇮🇳 India: Discriminatory Asylum Policy

The 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act provides fast-track citizenship for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Christians but explicitly excludes Muslims

Over 22,000 Rohingya Muslims face detention and deportation threats

30,000 Chin Christians from Burma and 9,000 Afghan refugees, including Hindus and Sikhs, reside in India

🇲🇾 Malaysia & 🇮🇩 Indonesia

Malaysia hosts over 190,000 refugees without legal protection, including 110,000 Rohingya and 28,000 Chin Christians

Indonesia hosts 14,300 persons of concern, with nearly 2,000 Rohingya arriving in the last two years

Local authorities attempted to push refugee boats back to sea and refugees face coordinated online disinformation campaigns

                ⚖️ Legal Framework Violations
                Despite obligations under customary international law and treaties like the UN Convention Against Torture, many countries are violating the principle of non-refoulement by forcibly returning refugees to places where they face persecution, torture, or death. Over 40 states hosting large refugee populations have not ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol.
            

Security Implications

The report emphasizes that addressing the basic needs of refugee populations can reduce grievances and mitigate the risk of radicalization, which in turn promotes national, regional, and global security. However, refugees across the region face: