Human rights groups have sought Yang di-Pertuan Agong's intervention to halt the ongoing crackdown on undocumented migrant workers when the country is aiming to achieve herd immunity by year-end.
In a joint statement today, the 20 NGOs, a political party and six activists said rounding them up has never been a good strategy and more so at the time of a pandemic.
"On our king’s birthday, we seek the royal intervention from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, to stop the impending crackdown and call for a full moratorium on arrest and detention by all enforcement agencies until the full vaccination process is over.
"The planned crackdown on undocumented migrant workers is state-endorsed violence aimed at the most vulnerable group of people in the country. It raises concerns about possible new infections and clusters, just like what we saw in immigration detention centres last year.
"This continues to put the lives of millions of migrant workers and Malaysians in jeopardy. Undocumented migrants consist of many different groups of people, who are themselves, victims," they said.
The groups said even the term Pati (pendatang asing tanpa izin) is highly misleading, legally.
"Malaysia should not punish migrants for being in conditions which are not of their faults. We believe that 95 percent of undocumented migrants in Malaysia are in this position because of violations by agents, employers and human traffickers," they said.
The statement was jointly endorsed by, among others, Tenaganita, North South Initiative, Beyond Borders Malaysia, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), Persatuan Sahabat Wanita, Monitoring Sustainability of Globalisation (MSN) and Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM).
Civil society activists and scholars Ann Lee, Allison Hill, Sudy Yeo, Hartini Zainuddin, Deborah Priya Henry and Hasan Al-Akraa are among the signatories.
The statement came after the Immigration Department nabbed 156 immigrant at an illegal settlement in Cyberjaya last night.
Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin recently courted criticism over the latest round of crackdown on undocumented migrants, launched in conjunction with the current "total lockdown" effective from June 1 to June 14.
Responding to his critics, Hamzah on Thursday said it would be impossible to administer Covid-19 vaccines on undocumented migrants and the operations were intended to "assist" them to register for a valid document, get vaccinated, and later given an option to leave or legally work here.
"We understand the government’s concerns to get everyone vaccinated, but detaining undocumented workers isn’t the right approach to do so," said the groups.
They said the national vaccination process must be led by the Special Committee on Covid-19 Vaccine Supply (JKJAV), and be kept as a humanitarian and health programme, not security.
"We also propose that immigration offences be seen as administrative offences and not use it to criminalise fellow humans for merely wanting livelihood across the border."
The groups also called for a revamp to the immigration process as currently the Immigration Act supersedes all other laws in the country and causes the victimisation of many migrants for faults not of their own.
They invited Hamzah and Immigration Department director-general Khairul Dzaimee Daud for a dialogue to look at progressive ways to resolve issues surrounding undocumented migrant workers. - Mkini
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