UNHCR cardholders told to register with information tracking system

Holders of United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) cards are encouraged to immediately register with the tracking refugees information system (TRIS) for the purpose of monitoring, assistance and employment opportunities.

Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin said only those who are registered in the TRIS system and have a special MyRC identity card can be considered for access to facilities provided by the government.

He said the facilities include public health services, education at registered alternative guidance centres, job opportunities and training, especially in the plantation, construction and manufacturing sectors.

He said it would also make it easier for the government to efficiently monitor the whereabouts of special cardholders through the implementation of new initiatives that would be introduced later.

"Although Malaysia has a firm stance of not recognising the refugee group, on humanitarian principles, the government still manages the group on a case-by-case basis," he told reporters after conducting a survey at the TRIS Registration Centre in Sungai Buloh, Selangor, yesterday.

Hamzah said the re-registration of UNHCR cardholders through the system would go through a more thorough profiling process, using advanced technology equipped with high-security features, and would need to be verified by the home ministry.

On July 22, the government approved the general use of TRIS for all UNHCR cardholders in the country.

Hamzah said on July 23 that the system was approved to ensure that the data of individuals holding UNHCR cards is re-registered with TRIS, to identify the whereabouts of refugees.

TRIS is a Malaysian database system which relates to the status of UNHCR cardholders and asylum seekers. It aims to update the management and profiling processes as well as with the data collection, registration, profile storage, analysis and reporting processes for the Malaysian government.