Amnesty, but will it work?

Amnesty, but will it work?

The 15-day amnesty period for illegal migrant workers expired
on November 14, but only 98,000 people responded to the
programme. It is understandable that Domestic Affairs Minister
Datuk Azmi Khalid was deeply disappointed.

The authorities have agreed to extend the grace period at the
request of the Indonesian government. However, illegal foreign
workers do not seem to appreciate this goodwill. It won't help
even if the government extends the deadline further.

The government's generosity fails to touch the hearts of
illegal foreign workers; instead, it has encouraged them to
infiltrate into the country. In order to stem the flow of these
illegal foreign workers, we have but to impose stricter penalties
along with year-long roundup operations.

But the illegal Indonesian workers in Malaysia seem to enjoy
"hassle-free" passage in and out of this country, thanks to the
poor enforcement on the part of the relevant government
departments. These people have taken advantage of the
authorities' "amnesty" program during the festive season to
infiltrate into the country illegally, thus sparing themselves of
the complicated entry procedures and documentation.

The government's effort to rid the country of illegal
foreigners has proven ineffective, so has the annual amnesty
programme.

Azmi reiterated that the government would continue with its
large-scale arrest operations next year, and arrested illegals
and their employers will be jailed and caned. Perhaps that will
help to put things right.

However, the government's effort, no matter how comprehensive
it is, will be futile unless the measure is carried out
persistently and in totality.

-- Sin Chew Daily, Selangor, Malaysia