RCI soon on human smuggling near Thai border amid claims of a police cover-up

Rohingya refugees pray for their departed relatives in Pokok Sena, Kedah, where remains from a mass grave in Wang Kelian were relocated. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: The government will set up a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) into allegations of human trafficking in Wang Kelian, Perlis, where authorities discovered mass graves four years ago.

Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said the decision was to address claims that there had been attempts to cover up human trafficking activities in the area.

“There are many who are not happy that certain people are trying to hide the truth of what happened there.

“Therefore, we have decided to set up a RCI. Now we await the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, after which the inquiry will commence,” he told a gathering in Kangar today.

In early May 2015, then inspector-general of police (IFP) Khalid Abu Bakar had announced the discovery of more than 130 graves in 28 temporary camps of a human trafficking syndicate in Wang Kelian.

This followed the discovery of similar graves in Thailand, which led Thai police to launch a massive crackdown on human trafficking networks.

Two years later, the New Straits Times reported that police had cleared the campsite where the mass graves were discovered, destroying potential evidences at the crime scenes before they were processed by forensics personnel.

The paper said that its investigations revealed that Wang Kelian might have been part of a “massive, coordinated cover up”. -FMT