PUTRAJAYA: Foreigners who are due for deportation can be freed from detention to prevent overcrowding in immigration depots, according to a lawyer with experience in immigration cases.
Harpal Singh said a provision in Section 34 of the Immigration Act empowers the director-general to use his discretion to release a foreigner held in a depot if he is given some form of security guarantee.
“Regulation 14 of the Immigration Regulations also allows the director-general to issue a special pass to foreigners to remain outside such depots,” he said.
He also said the government could save a lot in maintenance funds if there were fewer foreigners to be sent home.
He told FMT the cost of feeding and maintaining an inmate was about RM35 a day and “this is all done at the expense of taxpayers”.
Last week, 528 Rohingya detainees escaped from the Sungai Bakap immigration depot near Bandar Baharu, Kedah. Six of them died after being hit by a vehicle while trying to cross an expressway. The rest have been recaptured except for 72 still at large.
Harpal said uncertainty over how long they would have to remain detained had caused frustration among the inmates.
“But some depot commandants are proactive by working with foreign embassies to ensure that the inmates leave for home as soon as possible,” he said.
Another lawyer, Varghese Onny, said it took time for refugees and asylum seekers to obtain their UNHCR cards. The card is an identity document that does not entitle the holder to seek employment .
“It can be very frustrating to remain in depots indefinitely pending obtaining the card,” he said.
He also said these foreigners should be allowed to work to sustain themselves while UNHCR sought to resettle them in a third country.
But he added that there must be tight border controls to prevent an influx of foreign nationals into the country. - FMT
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.