Malaysia Deports "Undocumented Workers"
Malaysia Deports "Undocumented Workers"
Date: Monday, February 28, 2005 3:12 PM
JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER
by Rob Sanchez
February 28, 2005 No. 1205
Malaysia is cracking down on undocumented workers. If caught, the
migrant workers face fines of up to a year's salary, a whipping with a
rattan cane, several months in jail, and they will be banned from ever
returning to Malaysia. Unlike the United States, Malaysia is very
serious about deporting illegal foreign workers and they have some
innovative ideas to expedite the process. Up to 300,000 bounty hunters
will be given cash rewards to round up illegals for punishment and
deportation. The government is also setting up a hotline so that
informers can call up and report illegals to authorities. Illegal
aliens understand that unlike the United States, the Malaysian
government is serious about enforcing their laws:
"I feel sad leaving, but I don't want to be whipped or
jailed," said Mohamad Sifud, 30, who has worked illegally
in construction for 10 years.
Malaysia allows foreign workers to enter their country with temporary
work visas. There are approximately 1.2 million foreign workers in
Malaysia, and of that 800,000 are illegal. The illegal aliens that come
to Malaysia for work do so because Malaysia's guest-worker visas for
both skilled and unskilled workers are very restrictive and tightly
controlled. One of the most interesting aspects of the Malaysian work
visas is that they not only require employers to pay a monthly fee,
they also have to post a bond to insure that the alien leaves when the
visa expires.
Another interesting contrast with the United States is the way
employers that violate immigration laws are treated. It's very rare for
U.S. employers to suffer any punishment for their behavior - fines are
often miniscule and jail time is unheard of (examples include Walmart
and Tyson Foods). Not so in Malaysia where employers can face large
fines, jail time, and in some cases public flogging!
You can find out more details from the Immigration Department of
Malaysia at:
http://www.imi.gov.my/eng/perkhidmatan/im_WargaAsing.asp
To research statistics on Malaysian guest workers this is a good study:
http://www.rescueamericanjobs.org/articles/pdfs/singapore_foreignlabor.pdf
For balance, the last article is from the point of view of Malaysian
open-border bleeding hearts. Their arguments are very similar to what
we hear in the U.S. that mass deportations are inhumane and not
practical.
We, in Malaysia, who claim to be a caring people, cannot
just sit back and watch our Malaysian government just proceed
with the mass arrests and deportation of illegal migrants.
Articles used for this Newsletter
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4303625.stm
Malaysia migrant deadline expires
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1426703,00.html
Malaysia drives out illegal workers
http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/library/downloads/keyWorkplaceDocuments/ForeignLaborTrends/malaysia-2002.pdf
Foreign Labor Trends Malaysia 2002
http://www.asianlabour.org/archives/003387.php
Malaysia: 24 bosses face caning for hiring illegals
http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/33935
Migrant workers human beings, not animals
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4303625.stm
Malaysia migrant deadline expires
Thousands of illegal workers have been rushing to leave Malaysia, as a
deadline to get out of country expired.
Thousands more are in hiding, saying that the government's crackdown
leaves them with no jobs to go home to, or complaining that they are
owed wages.
The authorities have put armed volunteer reservists on standby for the
launch of a huge operation to deport those who choose to stay behind.
Punishments could include heavy fines, jail sentences and whipping.
The deadline for illegal workers to leave Malaysia has been extended
three times since the policy was first announced in October, but
despite this, the Malaysian immigration authorities estimate that at
least 200,00 illegal workers remain.
The Malaysian government says it has recruited more than 300,000
volunteers to round up those who stay.
They will be paid cash rewards for each illegal worker they apprehend.
ILLEGAL WORKFORCE
400,000-600,000 foreigners have already left
At least 200,000 remain
Many work in construction, plantations and domestic service
They risk jail, fines and whipping if found
Members of the public are being invited to ring a special hotline to
report suspect foreigners to the authorities.
Throughout the day, crowds of people have queued at a ferry port near
the capital, Kuala Lumpur, to board ships and naval vessels bound for
Indonesia.
Hundreds more waited outside the United Nations refugee agency in Kuala
Lumpur, hoping to be given papers that, in theory, could exempt them
from deportation.
"I feel sad leaving, but I don't want to be whipped or jailed," said
Mohamad Sifud, 30, who has worked illegally in construction for 10
years.
Foreign labourers without papers are being offered the chance to come
back if they acquire the proper documentation.
"I will definitely come back legally," Mohamad Sifud told the
Associated Press. "There is not much work back home."
'No choice'
But not everyone will be confident that they will be able to get a job
legally.
Alia Shukri, from Bali, said she would stay put.
"People ask me many times am I not afraid of being caught and jailed,"
she said. "Yes, I am scared, but what choice do I have?"
Most of the illegal workers are Indonesian, and the 26 December Indian
Ocean tsunami and interventions by the government in Jakarta have
prompted the Malaysian government to delay the crackdown three times
before.
Indonesia's Labour Minister, Fahmi Idris, told a Malaysian news website
that 100,000 Indonesians are refusing to leave because they are owed
wages, and that his government would take legal action unless they were
paid.
Malaysian Interior Minister Azmi Khalid stressed that he wanted the
deportations to be carried out humanely.
But human rights groups say the involvement of poorly-trained
volunteers carrying firearms invites accidents.
Those illegal workers who have not left by midnight local time will be
banned from returning, and could also face two years in jail, fines of
$13,000, and, for anyone under 50, up to six strokes of the cane.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1426703,00.html
Malaysia drives out illegal workers
300,000 'bounty hunters' join security forces for crackdown
John Aglionby, south-east Asia correspondent
Monday February 28, 2005
Guardian
Hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants in Malaysia are either
fleeing for the borders or in hiding before the government begins
taking action tomorrow against those working without proper documents.
More than 20,000 soldiers, police officers and immigration officials
will be supported in Operation Firm by 300,000 volunteers who have been
promised cash rewards for every illegal worker they apprehend or any
Malaysian found harbouring them.
"These migrants and their employers better be warned ... the crackdown
is on and there is no turning back," the immigration enforcement chief,
Ishak Mohamad, told Associated Press.
More than 200 places - remote communities and forest areas - have been
identified as likely hideouts to be searched in the first phase of the
operation.
The volunteers, who will get 80 ringgit (#11) for each person
arrested, have been given the right to carry guns and to search
properties without warrants.
Wahyu Susilo, a coordinator for the Indonesian NGO Migrant Care - most
of the illegal workers are Indonesian, told the Guardian: "We are
worried it will get very nasty and very violent.
"These guys are like poorly trained bounty hunters seeking
comparatively huge rewards."
When the crackdown was announced four months ago the Malaysian
Employers Fed eration estimated that there were about 1.65m illegal
workers, forming about 15% of the workforce.
About two-thirds of them are thought to have left during the
intervening amnesty, or to be leaving today.
Many of their employers stopped paying them when the campaign was
announced.
"If we had stayed we would have faced fines of up to a year's salary, a
whipping with a rattan cane, several months in jail and being banned
from ever returning," Lukman Paripai, a building worker, said.
He was prepared to return home to East Java today with his wife Nica
Astuti, even though he is owed more than two months' wages.
Mr Ishak has promised that illegal workers will not be denied their
human rights.
But he declines to comment on the plight of the estimated tens of
thousands who,like Mr Lukman, claim they are owed wages.
Most of them worked in the building industry, on plantations and in the
service sector and their absence is already being felt, according to
Alex Ong, a migrant workers' representative in the Malaysian capital,
Kuala Lumpur.
"I have noticed that vegetable prices have risen up to 20% in some
areas, because the farms no longer have the labourers," he said.
"It must be a similar story on the plantations.
"I'm sure they're struggling with the labour shortage."
Mr Ong believes many companies will be unable to hire labourers legally
"They will have to pay higher salaries and other benefits," he said.
"In some cases it could add 25% to their production costs."
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/library/downloads/keyWorkplaceDocuments/ForeignLaborTrends/malaysia-2002.pdf
Foreign Labor Trends Malaysia 2002
FLT 02-10
Frequency: Annual
Supercedes: 96-3
Prepared and Released by
U.S. Department of Labor
Bureau of International Labor Affairs
and U.S. Embassy, Kuala Lumpur
DEMOGRAPHY AND THE LABOR FORCE
In mid-2001, the population of Malaysia numbered 23.8 million, with 33
percent under the age
of 15. It is projected that the population will grow to 33.7 million in
2025. The labor force
increased from 9.6 million in 2000 to 9.9 million in 2001.
Migrant labor makes up approximately 20 percent of the Malaysian
workforce. The country
currently has between 1.7 million to two million foreign workers, of
whom 770,000 are legal.
The foreign workers are primarily from Indonesia, the Philippines,
Bangladesh, Burma,
Thailand, and India. They are employed in factories, in the
construction industry, and on
plantations. Others work in small businesses in Malaysia's informal
sector. Female immigrants
typically are employed as domestic servants.
In 2001, the Government revised its policy regarding foreign workers so
that job priorities
would be given to Malaysians in the face of the world economic
slowdown. Previously,
documented foreign workers in the manufacturing, construction, and
services industries were
allowed to work for six years in the country, and those working on
plantations were given a
seven year work permit. Now, registered foreign workers, with the
exception of domestic
servants, only may stay in Malaysia three years. In October 2001, the
Government announced
plans to deport approximately 300,000 foreign workers.
The Government of Malaysia also is cracking down on undocumented
immigrants, following
some violent incidents earlier this year. In addition, the Government
is concerned with
terrorism, noting that rebels from the Philippines have sought refuge
in Sabah and that
Indonesian Islamic militants have been found to have ties to Malaysia.
Shipping is restricted to
designated seaways, allowing officials to check for smugglers. Illegal
squatter homes have
been demolished, and thousands of illegal immigrants were deported
between January and April
2002. The Government has instituted an amnesty period, in which
undocumented immigrants
can surrender to authorities without facing punishment before
deportation. The amnesty period
is expected to last until the Immigration Act is revised by Parliament.
The proposed
amendments call for whipping, jailing, or heavy fines to be imposed on
immigrants found to be
undocumented.
There also are significant numbers of Malaysian working abroad,
although the numbers are not
as high as other Southeast Asian countries. The principal host country
is Singapore. While
some Malaysian workers are housed in Singapore by their employers, a
significant number
commute daily from Johor Bahru, near the border.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.asianlabour.org/archives/003387.php
February 12, 2005
Malaysia: 24 bosses face caning for hiring illegals
"Twenty-four Malaysian employers face mandatory caning for bringing in
more than five illegal immigrants each. When this punishment is meted
out, one of the festering sores in the Government's tough action
against overstayers and workers who have entered the country without
proper documents will be removed."
Immigration Department enforcement chief Datuk Ishak Mohamed said the
24 employers were charged under Section 55B of the Immigration Act
(Amendment) 2002.
This section makes caning mandatory. Those convicted are also liable to
be jailed for at least six months.
The New Straits Times has learnt that in the past, employers were
charged under a different section where caning was optional.
The 24 were rounded up by immigration enforcement officials during
separate operations last year.
Each of them was found to have hired or harboured more than five
illegal immigrants.
"If the courts find them guilty, they will be the first batch of
employers to be caned," he said today.
On Tuesday, Indonesian Manpower Minister Fahmi Idris said he was
perplexed why Malaysians who hired illegal Indonesian workers had not
been caned.
He said he was waiting to see a Malaysian court impose caning on an
employer.
Home Affairs Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid had said 132 employers were
brought to court last year.
Sixteen of them had been made to pay fines amounting to RM500,000. None
was caned.
Ishak said he agreed with the move by Indonesia to sue Malaysian
employers who failed to pay the wages of Indonesian illegal immigrants.
Ishak said under the Labour Act, these immigrants could take legal
action against their employers as their status, whether legal or not,
was not stated under the Act. The term used under the Act is "worker".
"However, I would like to advise these illegal immigrants to go back to
Indonesia and return to Malaysia later as legal workers.
"This way, they can proceed with their cases easily. They also need to
provide the necessary documents."
Source: Hamidah Atan, "24 bosses face caning for hiring illegals," New
Straits Times, 11 February 2005.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/33935
Migrant workers human beings, not animals
Charles Hector
Feb 28, 05 1:50pm
Deporting illegal migrant workers or undocumented workers is too
simplistic a solution for the manner the situation of foreign nationals
in Malaysia today. We have to be sensitive to the fact that many are
here in Malaysia not merely to upgrade their economic well-being.
In our neighbouring Asean nations such as Indonesia and Burma, we must
appreciate the fact that there is political turmoil that have caused
many to flee their home countries because they fear for their lives,
liberty and well-being.
Refugees in Malaysia must be distinguished from a person who has come
in to the country for only economic reasons. There must be a
distinction made between economic migrants and refugees, and while the
government has given some assurances that there will be, it is not
unrealistic to say that many a refugee will still fall victim to the
current crackdown.
We, in Malaysia, who claim to be a caring people, cannot just sit back
and watch our Malaysian government just proceed with the mass arrests
and deportation of illegal migrants. Let us not forget that we
may end up sending back those who fled their country right back into
the hands of their persecutors.
What is of serious concern is that about half-a-million police and
civilian volunteers will are now hunting down hundreds of thousands of
illegal immigrants. The raiding teams will include more than 200 armed
civilians, who will have the power to break down doors in their hunt
for the up to 800,000 illegal migrants believed to be still in
the country.
The fact that the non-police personnel will be armed is of great
concern. There must be serious consideration about who should be in
these raiding teams, and whether they should even be allowed to carry
guns. Even enforcement personnel with guns have been found wanting -
what more civilian part-timers.
The fact that members of the People's Volunteer Corps (Rela), an
organisation of uniformed part-timers who have some policing powers,
will receive cash rewards for each migrant arrested as an economic
incentive is also most disturbing. Let us not forget that we are
dealing with human beings here, not animals.
Let us call off this massive man-hunt, and continue with normal
enforcement exercises done by trained, responsible and mature officers
who would not use unnecessary force or abuse their powers. That would
be best way of showing all that we do indeed have a caring prime
minister and a caring government.
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