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Thomson Reuters
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – The new Malaysian government announced on Saturday that it plans to amend the laws on human trafficking and migrant smuggling a few days after the US State Department reported on a new report. A lack of progress.
The Ministry of the Interior stated that the proposals under discussion focused on protecting victims, giving them more freedom of movement and work, and introducing harsher sentences for traffickers .
On Thursday, the US Department of State released its Annual Report on Trafficking in Persons, in which Malaysia downgraded the Level 2 Watch List, a category designating countries that deserve special consideration, noting that the country of Southeast Asia demonstrate greater efforts than the previous year.
The report indicated that the government's efforts to protect victims remained largely inadequate and that complicity between the police forces hindered some efforts to combat trafficking.
"The Malaysian Government […] takes note of the report on human trafficking and fully commits to eradicating the crimes of human trafficking," the Interior Ministry said in a statement. communicated.
A new government, led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, was formed last month, while Malaysians voted for change after nearly a decade of being ruled by the corrupt administration of Najib Razak.
Malaysia has long been known as a destination for victims of trafficking, including documented and undocumented workers.
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It relies heavily on cheap foreign labor from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines, among other countries. There are nearly 2 million registered migrant workers, but there are millions more in the country without a work permit.
(Reportage of Emily Chow, edited by Simon Cameron-Moore)
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