Kula: Adopt policy changes, set up relief fund to protect migrant workers

CORONAVIRUS | Former Human Resources minister M Kula Segaran has called for the government to adopt policy changes and relief measures such as a special relief fund for undocumented migrant workers in the fight against Covid-19.

“Despite our relative progress, there is a concern that we have overlooked the precarious situation of our healthcare policies concerning foreign workers that would make it difficult for undocumented workers to be tested for the virus.

“This leaves us little room for reassurance of real improvement since we have foreign workers, both legal and illegal, who are living in our midst that are not eligible for Covid-19 testing," Kula Segaran said in a statement today.

“In this crucial time, we need to take a different approach by adhering to principles of the common good at the policy level to ensure undocumented workers are tested for Covid-19 without policy limitations and bureaucratic constraints.

"Health is a fundamental human right and there should be a special relief fund to protect these workers from the pandemic."

All undocumented illegal workers must also be tested for Covid-19 immediately, he said, or this is a “time bomb” waiting to happen.

It was previously reported there are a few million illegal workers in Malaysia and Kula Segaran said this means there is a large pool of undocumented people in the country who could potentially be at risk of being infected or infecting others with Covid-19.

He also noted that the home minister would be in the best position to know the exact numbers of undocumented foreign workers.

Kula Segaran then pointed to Singapore’s recent experience, where the tally has risen to 9,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases.

It was reported this recent spike includes 1,369 foreign workers living in dormitories, he said.

“I fear that Malaysia may face the same fate if matters are taken lightly,” he said.

The reality is that healthcare services in Malaysia are often inaccessible to migrant workers.

However, he said he understands that there are complex access barriers, many of which are beyond the control of the health sector such as affordability, the need for legal documents, language barriers, discrimination, physical inaccessibility and employer-related barriers.

For undocumented migrant workers, he said, the perceived close working relationship between the Health Ministry and Immigration Department effectively excludes undocumented migrants from access to public healthcare facilities.

"While legal workers would be easier to test since they are registered under the Social Security Organisation (Socso), the estimated millions of undocumented workers could be hiding with the force of law looming over their heads and fear of losing their freedom once they are tested.

“We must not rest on our laurels and find a way to mitigate the spread,” he said.

Kula Segaran said we could learn compassionate approaches from other countries such as California, US where their US$125 million Disaster Relief Fund will include a one-time payment of up to US$500 per person or US$1,000 per household to help undocumented workers affected by the outbreak.

The former minister also thanked the health professionals in the country for their hard work as well as the excellent job by Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah in handling the Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia so far. - Mkini