Known

On Tuesday 16 June 2009, Malaysia had the dubious 'honour' of being named as one of the countries around the world known for active participation in human trafficking. Granted that the nation altogether guiltless of Malaysia is back on its should be reason enough present situation here.

formerly referred to as the GS is not this type of crime, the mere fact that list of 'human trafficking countries' for us to sit up and take stock of the

Malaysia is surrounded by both land and sea, so the chances of aliens making illegal entry into the country are very high. To combat such illegal entry, we have the anti-smuggling unit operating round-the-clock at the border, besides the mandatory immigration and customs units. However, there are just as many groups of professional smugglers as there are enforcement units. Worse, many of these smugglers have highly paid collaborators working inside the enforcement units. The smuggling of human cargo started from the time of the administration of the Dr M due to political and economic needs, and the smuggling syndicates have since acquired much expertise. It is not uncommon for vans to ferry aliens across the border during the early morning hours when the roads are completely deserted. The syndicates use vans with powerful large capacity engines which can carry seven to ten people as far as several hundred kilometres across the country. Sampans and trawlers do the same journey by sea in the dead of the night. The reason why human trafficking here is being done on a largescale basis is the seemingly insatiable appetite for foreign labour. This addiction to foreign labour has provided huge amounts of money, rivers and rivers of it, to finance and lubricate the trade in human trafficking. Even lower-middle class families clamour for foreign domestic maids, never mind the countless numbers of factories, farms, workshops, hotels and maintenance service providers who would instantly grind to a halt without the foreign labour. Some undesirable consequencies have since arisen from this bad habit of over depending on foreign labour. They are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

sharp increase in crime higher unemployment among the locals more widespread corruption and bribery overcrowding in jails and detention centres greater concentration of vice nests and drug dens rise in healthcare problems more cases of document and identity counterfeiting rise in fatalities during transit rise in friction between different groups of immigrants more cases of immorality rise in number of child abuse cases & abandoned kids/babies breakdown in social values & resulting poorer mental health physical abuse by employers and exploitation political tension modern slavery practices

16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

undesirable changes in certain residential areas increased numbers of street beggars and the handicapped presence of squatter colonies booming blackmarket and trade in illegal items the country getting blacklisted and other undesirable results

The government has largely failed to protect both the foreign workers and the local citizenry. Foreign workers are routinely exploited by their unscrupulous employers and many of the local people have fallen victims to those foreigners who have chosen to get involved in violent crime to stay alive after they had lost their jobs. Many foreigners entered the country illegally to find work and they were aided by the smuggling gangs who have reaped a huge financial windfall through their unlawful activities. Others though, entered the country legally through the many 'employment agents' appointed by the authorities to recruit them. However, legalised entry does not in any way guarantee protection for the foreign workers from exploitation and/or physical abuse at the hands of their employers. I have seen with my own eyes one employer making her foreign domestic maid, who was no bigger than a 12 or 13-year-old in size, relocate her potted plants outside their house. The pots (urns) were quite big and heavy and the maid was obviously not suited for the task but did it anyway. This unfortunately was surely no isolated scene in this country. No wonder some of these maids have turned violent against their employers. Malaysia is definitely aiding the flow of human cargo and at the same time not doing much to rectify the situation. It is therefore most correct to reinsert Malaysia's name back into the list of countries known to be guilty of participating or aiding in human trafficking. Continue to next year and the next. Malaysia a model of success for the Commonwealth ? Now we can know why the Commonwealth is a grouping of sick nations. Happy trafficking !