Malaysia
Malaysia targets half a million undocumented migrant workers
March 12, 2007
Malaysia plans to arrest up to half a million illegal foreign workers this year, the immigration enforcement director said today, as officials voice fears over immigrant criminals.
A citizen volunteer corps known as Rela, which assists law enforcement agencies, has been mobilised to help police and immigration officers crack down on an estimated 600,000 illegal migrant workers, Ishak Mohamed, the department of immigration's enforcement director, said.
"As of today, Rela have checked 46,000 foreigners and 8,500 arrests have been made," Ishak told AFP.
"Our target is to arrest 400,000-500,000 illegals and we are also looking out to arrest as many as possible employers who hire foreigners illegally," he said.
Deputy Internal Security Minister Fu Ah Kiow last month called for a review of foreign worker recruitment policies, citing what he said were large numbers of foreigners in jail.
Fu said 34 percent of 35,000 people in Malaysia's prisons were foreigners, the state Bernama news agency said.
Malaysia is also mulling a bill which would recommend that workers register with their employers if they wished to go out during breaks or days off, while the country's police chief reportedly suggested confining foreigners to their workplaces and putting them under 24-hour surveillance to prevent crime.
Ishak said those apprehended were mainly Indonesians. They are placed in detention centers where they will be charged for illegal entry, jailed and caned before being deported home.
Employers get off free
His comments came as the deputy chief of mission at Indonesia's embassy, Abdulrahman Mohamad Fachir, said employers of illegal workers should receive the same punishment as the workers.
"We do not mind if our citizens are caned as long as the same applies to employers," Abdulrahman said, according to the New Sunday Times daily.
"If there are too many illegals, it is because there must be many employers of illegals," Abdulrahman said.
Ishak said that last year 363,000 illegal immigrants were arrested and deported while about 200 employers were charged.
He said employers who hired five or more illegal foreign workers face could face caning under the law.
"It's just that so far the court has not ordered for them to be caned but we are hoping that at least by the end of the year we will have a judge who is brave enough to order for them to be caned," Ishak said.
He said employers continued hiring foreign workers illegally to avoid paying levies to the government. Employers who hire foreign workers in the service sector have to pay up to RM1,800 for each one. Hiring illegal labour would cost nothing.
"They won't have to pay insurance, bear other expenses or even pay them decently. Those workers who are here illegally often just agree because they have no choice and will work for anything," Ishak said.
He said there are currently 1.9 million legal foreign workers in Malaysia, about 70 percent of whom hail from neighbouring Indonesia.
Wahyu Susilo
Head of Advocacy and Networking Division
International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID)
Jl. Mampang Prapatan XI/23
Jakarta 12790
Phone: 62-21-79196721/22
Fax: 62-21-7941577
e-mail: wahyu@infid.org
website: www.infid.org, www.infid.be
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