Us Embassy Says It Keeps Regular Contact On Forced Labour Matters

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The US embassy in Kuala Lumpur said it looked forward to continued cooperation with the Malaysian government. (AFP pic)PETALING JAYA: The US embassy in Kuala Lumpur said it keeps regular contact with the Malaysian government on forced labour matters, a day after the human resources ministry asked to be notified on such issues, so that solutions could be found.
The embassy’s spokesman, Michelle Kevern, said the embassy appreciated the ministry’s efforts to call attention to forced labour and looked forward to continued cooperation to combat these crimes.
Yesterday, human resources minister M Saravanan urged the embassy and the International Labour Organization to notify the government of forced labour matters so that solutions could be found before Malaysian products are blocked from entering the US.
Several Malaysian products had been subjected to import restrictions by the US because of allegations of forced labour. However, the ministry has yet to receive any reports from the US on them.
The most recent case involved palm oil giant Sime Darby Plantation Bhd whose products came under a US import ban in December 2020, following allegations of forced labour.
Earlier this evening, Bloomberg reported India’s main palm oil importer, Cargill Inc, as saying that Sime Darby Plantation had not presented sufficient information to deal with US allegations of forced labour, which prompted the company to halt palm oil purchases from Sime Darby.
Cargill is a supplier of palm oil to Italian confectionery giant Ferrero, which said last week it would stop indirect sourcing of palm oil from Sime Darby. Sime Darby said Ferrero had not been a direct customer for some time. - FMT

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