Sixty-two were charged with unlawful assembly and immigration offenses. If convicted under Section 6 of the Immigration Act, they face a sentence of up to five years imprisonment, a fine of up to 10,000 Ringgit (US $2,600), and six strokes of the cane, according to Latheefa Koya, a Malaysian lawyer who represents refugees and asylum-seekers.

Four were charged with not possessing official immigration documentation. They were arrested as they visited 64 Burmese nationals who had been detained on June 16 for demonstrating without a permit in front of the Burmese Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Three of the four were charged under Section 6, while the fourth had a valid passport and was therefore only charged with overstaying his visa.

Two of the 68 are 17 years old and were referred to a juvenile court, where they were also charged with unlawful assembly and immigration offenses. They are to appear in court again on July 26.

Thirty-eight of the arrested Burmese are registered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Prime Minister’s Office Minister Mohamed Nazri Aziz told The Irrawaddy in Kuala Lumpur last week: “Those Burmese or Malaysians who protested have broken the law of Malaysia-they have to be detained just like any other Malaysian citizen would be detained if they broke the law.”

Volker Turk, UNHCR Representative in Malaysia, on Wednesday echoed the remarks of the government. He told The Irrawaddy: “With regards to the arrests of Burmese nationals for unlawful assembly, UNHCR wishes to emphasize that we expect the refugees and persons of concern to us to respect the law of the country. Refugees are not outside of the law, and while they reside in Malaysia, they too are governed by the laws of Malaysia.”

The worldwide campaign for demonstrations outside Burmese embassies this month calling for the release of Suu Kyi was organized by the US Campaign for Burma, whose policy director, Aung Din, said he knew the Burmese had been planning to protest illegally in Malaysia.

“I promptly suggested (to) my friends from Malaysia that this would not be a safe idea and urged them to put their safety as first priority,” he told The Irrawaddy. “Nevertheless, they insisted on organizing the event because this is what they believe (will) help their leader (become) free. Of course, while they clearly made their own decision, I strongly commend the bravery of these people.”

Human rights activists in Kuala Lumpur also support the protesters’ efforts to make a political statement.

“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right,” said Arutchelvan, program manager of Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM). “It should be accorded to anyone irrespective of their nationality.”

After their sentencing, and after serving any prison term, the protesters are understood to face transfer to an immigration detention center where conditions are said by human rights workers to be inhumane and unhealthy. Conditions at the government-run centers are reported to have deteriorated severely since a government crackdown on illegal migrants in March, resulting in massive overcrowding. About 400 detainees are said to be living in each 20m by 30m block at Semenyih detention center in Selangor.

Dr. Irene Fernandez, director of Tenaganita, a migrant support and labor advocacy group, says “all kinds of diseases” are common in the government-run detention centers “There is very little access to treatment despite having medical personnel there.”

Dr. Irene Fernandez herself was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment in 1996 after Tenaganita released a “Memorandum on Abuse, Torture, Dehumanized Treatment and Deaths of Migrant Workers at Detention Camps.” She was convicted of publishing false news, but was released on remand.

One Chin refugee who has been in Semenyih detention center since October 2003, told a visiting reporter: “This is worse than jail. We are never given vegetables-only dried fish, which is sometimes rotten. In one week, we are given one egg.”

Detainees sleep on the concrete floor without a mattress or blanket, he said.

One Burmese refugee who spent five months in Semenyih after demonstrating outside the Burmese Embassy in Kuala Lumpur on May 17, 2004, said he had seen three sick inmates die in detention. Beatings were common, he said.

K Shan, of the National Human Rights Society (HAKAM), charged that detention center staff robbed inmates of their belongings and sexually harassed detained women.