Malaysia says missing Pakistani ‘journalist’ extradited four months ago

KUALA LUMPUR – A Pakistani man who fled to Malaysia over a decade ago, after allegedly writing about corruption involving state officials and missing persons, had been extradited, Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said on Tuesday.

The controversial move to deport Mr Syed Fawad Ali Shah to Pakistan last August was made by the previous Umno-led government, Datuk Seri Saifuddin told reporters, with the issue highlighting once again Malaysia’s inconsistent human rights record on deportations.

Mr Syed Fawad went missing in Malaysia from August last year, his wife said in a tearful news conference last week.

Mr Syed Fawad has been holding a refugee card issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) since 2011, his wife said, but Malaysia does not recognise the card.

Mr Saifuddin said the previous administration, headed by then Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, deported Mr Syed Fawad at the request of Pakistan’s High Commission in August.

“This unity government (led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) is only a month old. The request was made much earlier in August. Acting on this, the then government had traced his location, and on the third week of August, he was deported to Islamabad. That is the status now,” Mr Saifuddin told reporters.

“I can confirm that based on official records, the action taken is in line with the request filed by the Pakistani government,” he said.

Mr Fawad’s wife, who gave her name only as Syeda, earlier told the media that the Pakistani embassy in Kuala Lumpur denied that her husband had been deported as he was not listed as a wanted man.

She held the news conference last week to highlight the case with help from a small Malaysian political party.

The Home Minister on Tuesday said there was new information about Mr Syed Fawad.

He said that while the media identified the Pakistani as a journalist, the government officially recognised him as a former Pakistani police officer with disciplinary cases.

This, Mr Saifuddin added, was based on a notice issued to the Malaysian government identifying him as such.

“There are two versions here. The media reports him as a journalist, but the official version from Pakistan is that he is a former cop with various cases. I quote this from a Pakistani government source,” he said.

“But although he is a former police officer, he also has a good ability to write. As such, he wrote extensively criticising the government. This was why he is pictured as a journalist,” he added.

Mr Syed Fawad’s deportation has raised fresh questions about how the Malaysian government treats its refugees, including those holding official UNHCR refugee cards.

In August 2011, Putrajaya returned to China 11 Uighurs who were residing in Malaysia, at Beijing’s request.

These included several who were registered as refugees by UNHCR in Kuala Lumpur.

Yet in 2019, the government refused to extradite controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, an Indian national, despite receiving an official request from New Delhi.

The 57-year-old preacher is wanted by New Delhi to face money laundering charges.

He has espoused controversial views in his lectures and videos when answering issues linked to Hinduism with his puritan brand of Islam.

In October 2014, he was charged by India’s National Investigation Agency with inciting terror and delivering hate speeches.