A NUMBER of Acehnese migrants in Malaysia now have a new status: war refugees. This was given by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Malaysian capital city of Kuala Lumpur. The migrants, most of whom are youths, claimed to have come from the Aceh inlands, fleeing secretly through the entry points of Tanjungpinang, in Riau or Medan, in North Sumatra.

They fled their homes in desperation, crossing the Malacca strait