Amnesty, but will it work?<\/p>\n
The 15-day amnesty period for illegal migrant workers expired
\non November 14, but only 98,000 people responded to the
\nprogramme. It is understandable that Domestic Affairs Minister
\nDatuk Azmi Khalid was deeply disappointed.<\/p>\n
The authorities have agreed to extend the grace period at the
\nrequest of the Indonesian government. However, illegal foreign
\nworkers do not seem to appreciate this goodwill. It won't help
\neven if the government extends the deadline further.<\/p>\n
The government's generosity fails to touch the hearts of
\nillegal foreign workers; instead, it has encouraged them to
\ninfiltrate into the country. In order to stem the flow of these
\nillegal foreign workers, we have but to impose stricter penalties
\nalong with year-long roundup operations.<\/p>\n
But the illegal Indonesian workers in Malaysia seem to enjoy
\n\"hassle-free\" passage in and out of this country, thanks to the
\npoor enforcement on the part of the relevant government
\ndepartments. These people have taken advantage of the
\nauthorities' \"amnesty\" program during the festive season to
\ninfiltrate into the country illegally, thus sparing themselves of
\nthe complicated entry procedures and documentation.<\/p>\n
The government's effort to rid the country of illegal
\nforeigners has proven ineffective, so has the annual amnesty
\nprogramme.<\/p>\n
Azmi reiterated that the government would continue with its
\nlarge-scale arrest operations next year, and arrested illegals
\nand their employers will be jailed and caned. Perhaps that will
\nhelp to put things right.<\/p>\n
However, the government's effort, no matter how comprehensive
\nit is, will be futile unless the measure is carried out
\npersistently and in totality.<\/p>\n
-- Sin Chew Daily, Selangor, Malaysia<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/amnesty-but-will-it-work-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }