Malaysia

Anwar to write Nepal PM over formal mechanism for 55 missing Malaysians

PM will write to Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah to propose a formal mechanism if the search for 55 Malaysians still missing after last month’s disaster fails to establish their fate

Updated 1 hour ago · Published on 22 Sep 2026 2:29PM

Anwar to write Nepal PM over formal mechanism for 55 missing Malaysians
The proposed mechanism aims to preserve any ambiguity around the 55 Malaysians’ fate and avoids any suggestion that they have been declared dead - September 22, 2026

PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will write to his Nepalese counterpart Balendra Shah to propose a formal mechanism for the 55 Malaysians still missing if search efforts fail to establish their fate.

Anwar said the mechanism was needed to help affected families deal with legal, financial and administrative matters if the search operation could not provide certainty about their loved ones.

“I also raised the need to establish a formal mechanism if the victims cannot be found and the search process cannot provide certainty. This step is important to help affected families manage matters related to legal, financial and administrative affairs.

“I will send an official letter to Prime Minister Shah to detail this proposal,” he said in a Facebook post today.

Anwar had earlier spoken by telephone with Shah before departing for China this morning to discuss efforts to locate the 55 Malaysians who remain unaccounted for.

During the conversation, Anwar also conveyed his sympathy and condolences to the Nepalese government and people over the disaster that struck the country last month.

He expressed appreciation to the Nepalese government, authorities and rescue teams working in the search operation.

“Prime Minister Shah explained that the situation on the ground remains extremely complicated, with the scale of the disaster and destruction described as resembling a tsunami,” Anwar said.

Anwar said he also conveyed the concerns and hopes of the families of the 55 Malaysians who remain without certainty about the fate of their loved ones.

Shah assured him that search efforts would continue to the fullest extent possible despite increasingly challenging conditions on the ground.

“I hope all the efforts being undertaken will yield results and provide the certainty that is greatly awaited, especially by the families of all 55 Malaysians who remain missing,” he said. - September 22, 2026

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