Inside the noisy, bloody war zone of Selayang market

Foreign workers selling meat, fish and vegetables at the Selayang wet market.

SELAYANG: Visiting the bustling and noisy Selayang market, the largest wholesale market in the Klang Valley, in the early dawn hours is like walking into a war zone in a foreign land.

The place is a hive of activity. The incessant honking of motorcycles ridden by impatient traders rises over the noise of traders haggling, and the trundling of carts of vegetables and meat being wheeled about.

The noise is cacophonous – a mixture of languages from across Malaysia, Southeast Asia and the Subcontinent – from people wearing sarong, white sleeveless t-shirts and headgear. They speak mostly in their own language.

Accompanying the noise is an unbearable and stomach-churning stench. Bloody severed chicken heads and innards are flung on the wet slippery floor: flies and rats are as much a part of the market activity as the heavy presence of foreign labourers and traders.

Some traders hose down the discarded organs into a drain, which is often clogged, causing a backflow and overflow.

Meat waste left untended under shelves attract flies and rats.

One foreigner is sitting by the drain side, selling chicken meat, covered in flies, from a metre-high makeshift bench. He shouts “Hurry, hurry, it is finishing.”

FMT’s presence at the market clearly made some traders uncomfortable.

Chicken blood and innards strewn across the walkway.

“Are you going to write bad things about us? Go elsewhere,” a trader said, raising his voice. Other traders, also foreigners, quickly gather to see what is being photographed and filmed.

A Malaysian who trades at the market said the foreigners have become increasingly protective of their turf, the spots where they conduct their business.

Clogged drains filled with waste are a common sight at the Selayang wet market.

Chicken scraps and other waste products clog the drains at the back entrance of the Selayang wet market, causing dirty water to flow into the walkways.

“They fight among themselves. They fight over territory. When the fights become serious or get out of hand, the police step in to make arrests and calm the situation.” But it is only temporary. Fights soon start again later.

All quiet when the Immigration arrives on a raid

But the bustling noisy market does “enjoy” its moments of peacefulness and quiet. That is when the Immigration raid happens.

Within seconds, the scene is transformed. Everything comes to a standstill in a deathly hush.

The only ones around are the business owners, most of whom are local traders.

Of the cacophonous rest, there is not a sign or a whisper. Almost 90% of the workers have scurried to several ladders leading to their hideouts at the attic, and the ladders immediately drawn away to be hidden.

In the now quiet market, an Immigration officer tells FMT that raids are often carried out to flush out those working illegally, without proper papers.

“As often as we can catch them come new workers to replace them immediately,” he says. It is a never-ending cycle.

Immigration director-general Khairul Dzaimee Daud said his team is in the midst of carrying out joint operations at the Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market with the police, National Registration Department and Kuala Lumpur City Hall.

A migrant worker tries to escape while others rush to hide during a raid by the authorities.

He said the officers inspected 418 workers, with 58 workers and nine employers detained for further investigation.

“We also recorded 175 workers with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards,” he said in a statement to FMT.

He said a total of 75 raids have been carried out at the Selayang wet market and Kuala Lumpur Wholesale Market since January this year, with 191 undocumented workers and 39 employers detained for flouting immigration rules.

Nationwide, a total of 18,915 illegal workers and 429 employers have been detained. The majority of them (6,484) were from Indonesia, followed by Bangladesh (4,291), Myanmar (1,828), the Philippines (1,720) and 4,592 from various other countries.

Khairul said the cooperation of local authorities is needed to track down employers who rent out their premises to foreigners.

He also said his department would continue to carry out raids at the markets at least five times a week. -  FMT