Exploitation and abuse: Kuala Lumpur reviews labour market for migrants

Inadequate distribution of immigrants in the various sectors has necessitated a review of relations with 15 countries. Affected 2.2 million people, mainly from Bangladesh and Nepal, ended up in limbo. The practice of forced labour or non-payment of fees was targeted.

Kuala Lumpur (AsiaNews) - Under fire for the treatment of immigrants, the Malaysian government has decided to review the rules of engagement and protections for foreign workers (around 2.2 million) coming from numerous countries. An important decision, which confirms on the one hand the limits in managing the immigrant population and at the same time a persistent need.

Last January 16, the Ministers of Labor and the Interior met with journalists to reiterate how an inadequate distribution of workers in the various economic sectors has made it necessary to review bilateral relations with 15 nations. Among the areas of crisis are agriculture and plantations, unable to complete the established immigrant quotas while these have been exceeded in other production sectors.

“We will have to review the agreements taking into account various elements, including taxes, costs, contractual conditions, healthcare and more,” confirmed Interior chief Saifuddin Nasution Ismail. He went on to add that the authorities will encourage the transfer of worker quotas between different sectors.

There will be 15 nations from which Malaysia receives workers with whom it will renegotiate bilateral agreements. The primary objective is to try to resolve, above all, forms of exploitation and mismanagement which, if on the one hand does not resolve the needs of workers in various production or service sectors, on the other leaves a large number of immigrants without employment.

Thousands of foreign citizens, mostly from Bangladesh and Nepal, were left in limbo after their arrival last year, as the jobs promised to them in exchange for substantial payments for the required documents were no longer available. This is combined with constant reports of abuses carried out by unscrupulous recruiters and employers, many of whom have ended up on "blacklists", such as the US one, for forced labor practices or unpaid compensation.

Driven by necessity and the prospect of employment with wages higher than those available in their countries of origin, those who reach Malaysia are mainly (70%) migrants from Bangladesh and Nepal. And, to a lesser extent, also Indians, Pakistanis, Vietnamese and Thais who sometimes find themselves deprived of their rights but also of employment.

This is despite the law requiring employers to pay migrants who, deprived of a job because they exceed sector quotas, find themselves in an irregular position in a nation that is poorly welcoming to undocumented immigrants, fugitives and refugees.