Facing the strategic Straits of Malacca is the densely populated Bukit Malut, part of it comprising wooden houses built on stilts above the water. The scene is reminiscent of the traditional water villages found in Sabah.
For more than four decades, since its establishment, the settlement has been labelled a ‘Rohingya area’ and associated with undocumented migrants. A glance at social media reveals little in the way of positive commentary about Bukit Malut, located 20 kilometres from Kuah town.
Despite explanations by the authorities and other stakeholders that the villagers are not Rohingyas (refugees from Myanmar), most Malaysians continue to view them with suspicion.
“We’re used to it,” said one Bukit Malut resident interviewed by Bernama.
FROM BURMA TO LANGKAWI
Is it really a Rohingya settlement? Nothing could be further from the truth.
Official data show that more than 92.2 percent of Bukit Malut’s approximately 5,500 residents are Malaysian citizens with valid identity cards. The remainder face documentation issues, including matters relating to the marital status of some residents who are married to foreign nationals who also live in the settlement.
Tracing the origins of the Bukit Malut community, experts told Bernama that its members are, in fact, descendants of Malay Muslims from Kedah, with their history dating back to the Japanese occupation of Malaya from 1942 to 1945.
“They are originally people of Malaya… (Bukit Malut) is not a landing site for the Rohingyas. Some people may believe that, but it is simply not true,” stressed Associate Prof Dr Mohd Na’eim Ajis, who has conducted extensive research into migration, including refugee movements, particularly in the northern part of the country.
Mohd Na’eim, a lecturer at the College of Law, Government and International Studies at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), said the Bukit Malut community’s roots can be traced to Kedah residents who were sent by the Japanese as forced labourers to Burma for the construction of its railway.
When the Japanese occupation ended, some of these workers did not return to Malaya. Instead, they settled in Ranong, in southern Thailand near the Thai-Myanmar border.
They subsequently married the locals. Yet despite assimilating into the local culture, the descendants retained their Malay Muslim identity and continued to speak the Kedah Malay dialect. The community later became known as ‘Melayu Islam Kedah’ or the Kedah Malay Muslim community.
In the 1980s, on humanitarian grounds, the Kedah state and Federal governments initiated efforts to bring them back to Malaysia. The first group who returned comprised about 120 people.
They were initially gathered at the community hall in Padang Lalang in Ayer Hangat, Langkawi, for documentation purposes before being placed in temporary accommodation in Terengganu for about three months. They were subsequently sent to Pahang and Johor to work on oil palm plantations.
Eight years later, however, five families comprising about 15 people – from the first group – returned to Langkawi and began establishing a new settlement on government reserve land in Bukit Malut.
LEGITIMATE MALAYSIAN CITIZENS
From those modest beginnings, the settlement grew into a much larger community, with an estimated 5,500 residents as of May this year.
According to official data, Bukit Malut now has about 1,400 housing units, including around 800 houses on land and about 500 built over the water.
The settlement consists of six villages: Kampung Bukit Malut, Kampung Tanjung Lembung, Kampung Dato’ Hassan, Kampung Sungai Tepa, Kampung Baru Sungai Tepa and Kampung Paya Mengkuang.
The villages occupy land belonging to the Malaysian Fisheries Development Authority, Permodalan Kedah Bhd and Northern Shipyard Sdn Bhd. Some of the plots are privately-owned titled land.
Over the past four decades, the government has recognised more than 5,000 Bukit Malut residents as legitimate Malaysian citizens, giving them the full rights and benefits of citizenship, including the right to vote in elections.
Based on the ST2/2026 Electoral Roll dated May 21, 2026, a total of 3,075 residents are registered voters in the Bukit Malut polling district.
The government has also, in recent years, begun paying closer attention to the area amid mounting controversies and public pressure. Discussions on relocating the residents to another site began in April 2021, with the aim of redeveloping the Bukit Malut settlement in a more systematic and planned manner.
The National Security Council subsequently engaged the relevant agencies to explore possible solutions. Recently, on Aug 10, Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor officially announced the state government’s commitment to developing planned housing for Bukit Malut residents.
Mohd Na’eim, however, said the complexity of land ownership and the physical layout of the settlement pose major challenges to any redevelopment effort.
Previous attempts had been made to relocate residents, he said, but these could not be fully implemented, leaving questions over the future of Bukit Malut unresolved.
“Population growth and the physical expansion of the settlement have made finding a solution increasingly difficult,” he said.
CHALLENGES PERSIST
One of the most visible challenges is waste management and cleanliness. Bukit Malut has frequently been associated with poor garbage disposal, raising concerns over public health and pollution while also affecting Langkawi’s image as an international tourist destination.
Any effort to address the problems in Bukit Malut, Mohd Na’eim said, must therefore take into account not only the interests of residents but also the environmental impact and the island’s tourism image.
Another challenge is access to utilities and facilities as illegal electricity and water connections do exist here, raising safety concerns and revenue leakage. This underscores the need to ensure residents have access to basic amenities through proper channels.
The same applies to the madrasahs, suraus and jetties that remain unregistered. Bukit Malut has also long been dogged by allegations that it is a hub for criminal activity, particularly smuggling and drug trafficking.
Police data from 2022 to 2026, however, paint a different picture. According to UUM research statistics, no serious crime cases were recorded in Bukit Malut over the past five years.
In November 2025, Kedah police chief Datuk Adzli Abu Shah denied allegations that members of the Bukit Malut community were involved in major criminal networks.
Nevertheless, Mohd Na’eim said the issue should not be dismissed and must continue to receive the attention of the authorities, particularly to protect residents from being made scapegoats by irresponsible parties seeking to further their own interests.
PUBLIC PERCEPTION
Meanwhile, Bukit Malut Rukun Tetangga Area chairman Mohamad Fadzli Abdullah said residents have largely become accustomed to the negative perceptions surrounding their community.
“We are used to it. Whenever there is an issue involving refugees from Myanmar arriving in Langkawi, Bukit Malut is often singled out by people who assume that the refugees land here,” he said.
He added that in reality, it would not be easy for them to land in Bukit Malut because the area is located next to jetties operated by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, the Royal Malaysian Customs Department and the Marine Police.
Mohamad Fadzli said the perception had nevertheless affected residents’ daily lives, including their employment prospects.
“Some residents used to complain that it was difficult to find jobs and that they faced discrimination. But the situation has gradually improved as more residents are now working in various sectors across Langkawi,” he said.
Hasanah Zakaria, 42, who has lived in Bukit Malut for 20 years, said she too has witnessed the effects of the stigma and hopes people outside the community will reconsider their perceptions of Bukit Malut residents.
According to Mohd Na’eim, Bukit Malut’s problems cannot be solved simply by building a new settlement. The bigger challenge, he argued, is closing the gap between public perception and the reality on the ground.
He said the government must address that gap alongside its efforts to redevelop the settlement.
“What is needed is not merely a physical solution, but the rebuilding of relationships among the community, the government and the wider public,” he stressed.
“When we talk about managing perceptions of Bukit Malut, we need to take early action, change its image and communicate the reality of what is actually happening there.
“As an academic who has done research on this migration, I hope the negative narratives and sentiments surrounding Bukit Malut can be dispelled and replaced with a more positive narrative.”
He added that the public must receive accurate information about the history and status of Bukit Malut residents, while the latter must play their part by ensuring that rules, laws and cleanliness standards are observed.