Govt To Implement Master Plan To Combat Cross Border Crimes Trafficking

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A comprehensive master plan for border control will be implemented to combat cross-border criminal activities including human trafficking, said the Home Ministry.
Its minister Hamzah Zainudin said through the plan the assets of all security agencies will be combined to ensure better and more effective control at the national borders.
“In addition, we will have a single border agency and the latest technology will be used to control people coming in and out of the country," he told a press conference after officiating at the 2022 Immigration Day Celebration in Putrajaya today.
Hamzah said this when commenting on the measures to be taken by the government following the report that Malaysia has again been given the lowest rank in the US Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report 2022 as it remains in Tier 3 for the second consecutive year.
In the report, it was revealed that the government failed to meet the minimum standards in efforts to stop human trafficking.
Commenting on the report, Hamzah said it was subjective reporting and also took into account various perceptions of Malaysia's efforts in tackling human trafficking.
"The report was also influenced by actions taken by employers who abuse and exploit their workers by withholding their passports, making them work illegally, not paying wages and not providing suitable accommodation," he added.
Hamzah stressed that the Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons led by the Home Ministry had always taken strategic and decisive action to combat human trafficking in the country.
Among the strategic actions that have been implemented are amendments to the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 which came into effect on Feb 22 and the National Action Plan on Anti-Trafficking in Persons 2021-2025.
"We have also enhanced existing collaborations through a whole-of-nation approach with various stakeholders at the domestic and international levels," he said.
Hamzah added that his ministry and the council were committed to preserving the rights of victims of human trafficking and have ensured that stern action is taken against those directly involved or abetting the crime.
Sosma improvement
On Subsection 4 (5) of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 or Sosma, Hamzah said he was open to discussing with any party, including the opposition, on improving the act.
Yesterday, the Dewan Rakyat approved a motion to quash the House's decision on March 23 which rejected the extension of the enforcement of Sosma’s Subsection 4 (5).
The motion tabled in accordance with the House of Representative’s Standing Order 36 (3) was approved after a vote which saw 105 MPs agree while 83 disagreed and 32 were not present.
Following the decision, the Home Ministry will re-submit the motion to extend the enforcement of Subsection 4 (5) of the Act which allows the 28-day detention period to be maintained for another five years beginning July 31, during this Parliament session.
Call for explanation
Meanwhile, the Parliament Special Select Committee on Fundamental Liberty and Constitutional Rights has called on the relevant agencies, especially the Home Ministry, to explain the forced labour issue following the latest TIP report.
"Coordination among the relevant government agencies in tackling the issue of forced labour must be carried out more comprehensively and effectively,” its chairperson Azizah Mohd Dun said in a statement today.
Azizah Mohd DunThe committee was deeply concerned with the issue of forced labour in the plantation and manufacturing sectors in Malaysia, which caused the country to be placed in that position in the said report.
She said the committee had, so far, held five meetings for in-depth discussions of the issue by calling up the relevant agencies as well as by hearing briefings held by the Human Resources Ministry; Plantation, Industries and Commodities Ministry; Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants; and the Labour Department.
Two of the companies handed the Withhold Release Order (WRO) by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had also been called up to give an explanation, she added.
Azizah said the committee meeting yesterday was briefed by the Human Resources Ministry, which presented the results of the trip by its minister M Saravanan to Washington.
"This meeting also discussed several important relevant issues, namely Malaysia's ranking in Tier 3 in the report as well as steps taken regarding the WRO sanctions by the CBP based on the 11 forced labour indicators of the International Labour Organisation.
"The committee is aware that the issue of forced labour, which caused the WRO to be imposed on eight companies in the plantation and manufacturing sectors, had resulted in losses to the country,” she added.
- Bernama

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