Tourism and Culture Minister Nazri Abdul Aziz said it is a "good proposal" to allow the two North Korean suspects in the murder of Kim Jong-nam to leave Malaysia, in return for the release of the nine Malaysians in North Korea.
"I don't know whether North Korea has asked to exchange the Malaysian citizens with the suspects because negotiations are by the foreign ministry.
"But if it is true, that proposal is good because it can ensure the safety of Malaysians in North Korea. The safety of Malaysians in North Korea is more important," he told reporters in the Parliament lobby today.
However, Nazri said Malaysia should not surrender Jong-nam's body to North Korea because it should be released to the deceased's family instead.
The speculation of a citizen swap arose after an earlier Oriental Daily report claiming this was on the table in the negotiations between Wisma Putra and the North Korean delegation in Kuala Lumpur.
Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein dismissed this as rumours.
Jong-nam, the brother of North Korean supreme leader, was killed at KLIA2 on Feb 13. His preserved body is at the Hospital Kuala Lumpur morgue.
An Indonesian woman and a Vietnamese woman have been charged for his murder, at the Sepang Magistrate's Court.
Police said two other suspects - second secretary Hyon Kwang-song and North Korea airline Air Koryo staffer Kim Uk-il, are holed up at the embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
Police cannot raid the embassy in adherence with the Vienna Convention which states that embassies are sovereign territories.
Pyongyang last week imposed a ban on Malaysians from leaving North Korea, prompting Malaysia to take reciprocal action.
Putrajaya said the Malaysians barred from leaving North Korea are safe and free to move about the country.
This was after Malaysia expelled North Korean ambassador Kang Chol for alleging that Malaysian investigators were botching the investigation in Jong-nam's death.
Despite the travel ban, Malaysia will deport 50 North Korean workers from Sarawak as their work visas have expired. Sarawak has immigration autonomy.
There are 315 North Koreans in Malaysia, including four who are under the Malaysia My Second Home programme.- Mkini
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