40,000 Nepalis stare at Malaysia deportation PDF Print E-mail Thursday, 05 September 2013 KATHMANDU, AUG 29 - Around 40,000 Nepali migrant workers stare at immediate deportation as Malaysia prepares to begin its ‘’biggest-ever’’ crackdown on illegal migrant workers. According to media reports, the Malaysian government is planning to start arresting an estimated half a million foreign nationals working illegally in the Islamic kingdom. The three-month-long crackdown, which is seen as a measure to ‘flush out unwanted foreigners’, is expected to begin on Sunday, The Star, a Malaysia-based English language newspaper, reported on Wednesday. Malaysia is one of the biggest work destinations for Nepali workers in terms of existing volume of the migrants who number around 650,000. According to the Department of Foreign Employment, Malaysia took in 156,770 Nepali migrants in the fiscal year 2012-13, up from the 98,367 the previous year. On the planned crackdown, the Nepali Embassy in Kuala Lumpur said it has not received any official information so far. “We read the news in today’s newspapers, but I cannot say anything until we get a confirmation from the Malaysian government,” Labour Attache at the embassy Amal Kiran Dhakal told the Post. According to the embassy, there were 32,000 Nepalis working illegally in the kingdom a year ago, while that data has not been revised. Former second secretary of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (NAFEA), Kumud Khanal, said there is a big trend among Nepali workers to leave their original workplaces and get into security-related jobs. “This trend increased after the Malaysian government officially announced it would prefer Nepalis in the security jobs for their veritable reputation in that sector,” said Khanal. Although workers can change jobs, it should happen under the country’s legal framework and without violating the contract with the former employer. However, instead of going the legal way, Nepali workers often run away from their original employer, leaving behind important documents like the passport, and go to work with other employers without a contract. Media reports said the Malaysian authorities’ target will be mostly those who registered for an amnesty scheme for illegal worke.. more whiteglove.my/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=343&Itemid=47
Posted on: Tue, 17 Sep 2013 01:27:06 +0000