208 Deaths In Immigration Custody From 2018 Deputy Minister

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PARLIAMENT | There have been 208 deaths in immigration custody recorded from 2018 up to Feb 15 this year, according to Deputy Home Minister Ismail Mohamed Said.
Ismail said the deaths at 18 immigration detention depots nationwide were attributed to various health complications, including 25 from Covid-19.
"Causes of death include septic shock, severe pneumonia, tuberculosis, lung infection, dengue, heart complication, asphyxiation, and 25 cases of Covid-19," he said while responding to Azalina Othman Said (BN-Pengerang) during question time this morning in the Dewan Rakyat.
Early stages of the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020 saw immigration authorities cracking down on migrants as part of the nationwide lockdown, also snaring tourists who overstayed and recording at least one high profile death.
Ismail further said among measures taken to improve health conditions among immigration detainees include placement of an assistant health officer at each depot, health screenings, immunisation of child detainees and disease management with help from the local District Health Department.
Deputy Home Minister Ismail Mohamed SaidIsmail added that the ministry is also committed to ensuring that all immigration detention depots will meet minimum standards at par with prisons under its purview.
'Verifying migrant workers permit'
To a supplementary question from Khoo Poay Tiong (Pakatan Harapan-Kota Melaka), Ismail said Immigration Department raids have picked up migrants with work permits and sent them to its detention depots for verification purposes.
"I would like to explain that during the immigration operations, we found that eventhough the migrant workers held a valid permit, they are not working for the right employer.
"They are found to be working for a different employer than what is stated in their permit.
"They also have a copy of their permit, and not the original document. So during an operation, they can be taken for verification," he added. - Mkini

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