Red Cross raises alarm on illegals
Red Cross raises alarm on illegals
Agencies, Jakarta/Kuala Lumpur
About 8,000 Indonesians, recently expelled from Malaysia following a crackdown on illegal immigrants, are stranded in border camps, resulting in many becoming ill with malaria and tuberculosis, the Red Cross stated on Thursday.
The workers have packed into six camps in Nunukan, a district in East Kalimantan province bordering Malaysia, a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, Virgil Grandfield, told AFP.
Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) chairman Mar'ie Muhammad described the situation along the border as "terrible, with migrants packed together like sardines".
The PMI has been running four health posts and one mobile clinic in Nunukan for a month, treating 3,949 persons suffering from diseases such as malaria, dengue, tuberculosis and pneumonia, Grandfield stated.
He said he expected the number of workers arriving at Nunukan to "skyrocket in the next days and hours".
Nunukan is a key entry point for Indonesian migrant workers coming to and from Malaysia. Most of those in the camps do not have enough money to return to their villages and are hoping to return to Malaysia.
Indonesian Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Fahmi Idris said at least 449 Indonesian illegal migrants were netted in a crackdown by Malaysian authorities.
He added that it should take no more than 14 days to investigate the detained Indonesians.
"If some of them possess passports, they will be directly deported. But those failing to show required documents, they will be taken to court," Fahmi said.
He said the government has prepared a team of 26 lawyers to assist the Indonesian workers facing trial in the neighboring country.
The minister lamented the fact that so many illegal workers defied the Feb. 28 amnesty deadline.
"We had several times told them to return home first to arrange for their working permits. After that, they would have been able to return to Malaysia to claim their salaries -- with our assistance," he said.
"It's up to them if they don't want to return home. The government cannot help them anymore."
The rights group Amnesty International last month urged Malaysia to halt the planned deportation amid fears that migrants from conflict zones like Myanmar, Nepal and Aceh could face execution or torture when sent home.
But Malaysia has dismissed such fears.
Rights groups have also expressed concern that the massive crackdown would lead to abuse.
Malaysia's Home Minister Azmi Khalid said on Thursday that the roundup of illegal foreign workers was proceeding smoothly without any reported cases of mistreatment, which human rights groups feared might occur.
"So far, we have not heard any unpleasant stories," he said as quoted by AP. "I would urge the teams involved in the operations to protect the country's name so that our actions are respected by our neighbors and the international community."
Azmi declined to reveal how many illegal migrants had been nabbed so far in a nationwide crackdown that began after a four- month amnesty ended at midnight Monday.
Malaysia had estimated there were nearly a million illegal workers in the country, mostly from Indonesia but also from the Philippines, Myanmar, Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.
Over 380,000 took advantage of the amnesty, which started at the end of October, and left without any penalties. But hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants remain, many of them in the construction, plantation and service industries with menial jobs that many Malaysians refuse to do.