“Many Nepalis working illegally were compelled to do so because, they did not get the assured salary and had to change jobs,” MoFA spokesperson Deepak Dhital said.
क्वालालम्पुर, पुस २४ - गैरकानुनी हैसियतमा बसेको भन्दै मलेसियामा चार जना नेपालीलाई पक्राउ गरिएको छ ।
मलेसियाली अध्यागमन विभागले पेनाङका विभिन्न स्थानमा छापा मार्ने क्रममा ४ जना नेपाली कामदारसहित ३९ जना विदेशी नागरिकलाई पक्राउ परेका पेनाङस्थित अध्यागमन अधिकारीलाई उल्लेख गर्दै बर्नामा लगायत स्थानीय पत्रपत्रिकाले जनाएका छन् ।
पक्राउ पर्नेमध्ये १३ महिला र एक बालिकासमेत छन् भने उनीहरूको नाम खुलाइएको छैन ।
प्रहरीले पेनाङको मुरुस्थित एक काठ फ्याक्ट्रीमा छापा हान्दा त्यहाँ कार्यरत १२ जना नेपालीमध्ये चार जना नेपाली गैरकानुनी हैसियतमा रहेकाले पक्राउ परेको जनाइएको छ ।
त्यस्तै त्यहाँ विभिन्न स्थानमा छापा मार्ने क्रममा पक्राउ पर्नेमा म्यानमार, भियतनाम, इन्डोनेसिया र बंगलादेशका नागरिक पनि छन् । पक्राउ परेका नेपालीसहित सबैलाई थप अनुसन्धानका लागि जुरुस्थित डिटेन्सन डिपोमा राखिएको छ ।
KATHMANDU: The government has urged the Malaysian government to treat hundreds of Nepali workers arrested in Malaysia because of their “illegal” stay, to treat them well.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said the detainees were compelled to stay “illegally” in different parts of Malaysia because they had not been provided the salary and perks assured by supply agents and employers.
“Many Nepalis working illegally were compelled to do so because, they did not get the assured salary and had to change jobs,” MoFA spokesperson Deepak Dhital said.
Changing a job without employer’s consent, and staying without extending visa are the makes migrant workers illegal in Malaysia. Dhital told a press briefing it was hard to give the exact number of Nepalis staying illegally in Malaysia, but estimated the number at 5,000 to 10,000. He said none of them had gone there illegally. They became undocumented in the course of their work there.
Around 250 Nepalis were rounded up in the first three days of a police crackdown launched on September 1. The campaign continued and by Friday the number of detained Nepalis could have reached 1,000, said a MoFA official.
Most Nepalis were picked from Kuala Lumpur, Klang Valley and Johor areas. Some Nepalis complained to the Embassy of Nepal in Kuala Lumpur that police had misbehaved with them. They said they were not even given a chance to show their documents. “Through our mission in Kuala Lumpur, we have urged local authorities to behave well with them,” Dhital said. The embassy has also urged local authorities to waive or slap minimum fine.
Earlier, people whose status had become illegal were fined up to 400 ringgits (Rs 12,000), but now the threshold has been set at 3,000 ringgits (Rs 90,000) before their release and deportation. The Malaysian government had given opportunity to undocumented migrant workers to register and make their status legal from July 2011 to January 2012. Those who failed to be documented are now the target of the crackdown.
Local police said some 500,000 foreign workers could be staying illegally in the country.
