'Migrants influx at KLIA due to employers chasing deadline'

 

The influx of migrants at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport is due to local employers rushing to meet tomorrow’s deadline to bring in workers.

In a statement, Immigration Department director Ruslin Jusoh noted that the incoming migrant workers would also have to be subjected to checks and health screening at the airport upon arrival.

“Under normal circumstances, the daily number of migrant workers’ arrival is between 500 and 1,000 people. The arrival number increased to up to 2,500 people on May 22 and by May 27, it was between 4,000 and 4,500 individuals daily.

“The department expects the number to increase further until May 31, based on airlines increasing their flight frequencies to cope with the demand,” he said.

To cope with the influx, Ruslin said that it was working with Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad to implement several steps, including increasing the number of counters to expedite the checking and verification process and adding more immigration officers to manage the large influx of migrant workers.

In addition, the migrants at the terminal are also provided with food and drinks while they are at the terminal, the department assured.

In March, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said his ministry would not extend the May 31 deadline for hiring migrant workers through the Labour Recalibration Programme 2.0.

Ruslin added that his team would continue to monitor and improve the situation and prompt employers to cooperate by promptly attending to the immigration screening process for their employees, which would further reduce congestion at the arrival hall.

‘Shocking situation’

Meanwhile, Tenaganita executive director Glorene A Das said their consultant had visited KLIA earlier and was shocked by the situation.

She told Malaysiakini that many migrant workers arrived without any information about their employment status, which has been a recurring issue in recent years.

Tenaganita executive director Glorene A Das

“Based on our findings, many of these workers do not have immediate employment or employers ready for them.

“Our consultant, Aziz Abdul Ismail, told us that almost all of them might be in debt bondage,” she said, adding all of them are from Bangladesh.

Glorene also said many of the migrant workers have not passed the immigration gate and are still waiting for their employers and agents to assist them.

“This is precisely why Malaysia must develop and implement a comprehensive national policy to regulate the recruitment, placement and employment of migrants,” she emphasised.

Meanwhile, Adrian Pereira, executive director of North-South Initiative, called the influx “abnormal” and questioned what would happen to the workers if their employers did not come to get them.

As some workers may have already paid recruitment fees to agents and bogus employers, Adrian suspected that the influx could indicate forced labour and human trafficking.

“We have never seen such a scene like this before. The people who have money now will try to bring in as many workers as they can, as fast as they can. But what happens to the workers if they don’t have jobs?” he asked. - Mkini