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Friday, February 12, 2010
Malaysia, UNHCR to enhance ties on refugee issues
Malaysia expects to continue cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees (UNHCR) over international refugee issues, said Malaysian foreign ministry.
The ministry said in a statement that the cooperation, on humanitarian grounds, was among the highlights of the first meeting between Foreign Minister Anifah Aman and Paul Alan Vernon, representative of UNHCR to Malaysia, on Tuesday in Putrajaya, the administrative center of Malaysia.
The meeting provided the opportunity for both sides to discuss a range of issues pertaining to refugees and asylum seekers at the international level, it said.
Both Anifah and Vernon appreciated the excellent partnership between the Malaysian government and UNHCR in tackling with international refugees problems.
Malaysia, by now, is not a state party to the 1951 Convention and its Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, said the statement.
As of January 2010, there were some 79,300 refugees and asylum- seekers registered with UNHCR in Malaysia, who came from Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan, according to UNHCR website statistics.
UNHCR estimated that there might be 20,000 more unregistered in Malaysia.
Source: Xinhua
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Ministry postpones ops on bosses hiring illegal workers
thestar
online
online
PUTRAJAYA: The planned Feb 15 nationwide crackdown on employers harbouring illegal workers has been postponed, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein.
He announced this after meeting 31 representatives from Chinese chambers of commerce and guilds yesterday.
The move, he said, would allow the Chinese New Year festivities to proceed smoothly.
The Immigration Department announced the crackdown on thousands of employers believed to be harbouring or employing illegal workers.
There are about 1.8 million legal foreign workers in the country and the department believes there are an equal number of illegals.
The department had received many requests urging that the crackdown be postponed as it was scheduled to start on the second day of Chinese New Year, when businesses would be brisk with huge profits to be made.
Asked why the postponement was set to an unspecified date, Hishammuddin said it was the ministry’s way of assessing the commitment of employers.
“We need their commitment in providing us with complete data on the number of foreign workers they hire, and also to justify the reasons for hiring foreign workers.
“From this, we can formulate solutions to overcome issues of foreign worker employment in the country and eventually reduce the number,” he said.
When met after the meeting, several chambers’ leaders lauded the move by the Government, saying it took a tremendous load off their shoulders.
Federation of Malaysia Chinese Guilds Association secretary Ng Po Kok said its members would cooperate with the Government in providing data on the foreign workers.
Malaysian Indian Restaurant Owners Asso-ciation president Datuk R. Ramalingam Pillai said restaurant owners would follow the ministry’s advice to stop using foreign workers, but they would not be able to do so overnight.
On another issue, Hishamuddin announced that the national crime rate had been reduced by 20%.
Last year, it was announced that an allocation of RM3.7bil from the Budget would be used to reduce the crime index by 5% by the end of 2010.
“We are happy to announce that the target has been achieved under the National Key Result Areas.”
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Feb 22 decision on Visas-On-Arrival ( VOA )
thestar
online
online
PUTRAJAYA: The fate of visas-on-arrival (VOA) issued to foreigners from eight nations will be decided when Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin chairs the Cabinet Committee on Foreign Workers and Illegal Immigrants meeting on Feb 22.
The meeting will decide whether the controversial VOA facility should be abolished or continued, with changes made to the process to prevent abuse. Malaysia is said to be the only country providing such visas.
It is learnt that the committee would outline more stringent measures for issuance of visas to visitors from several “identified countries” as efforts were needed to prevent foreigners from taking part in negative activities while they are here.
Visitors from these countries are expected to be carefully vetted during their visa application process. They will likely be required to produce more documents during the visa application process, rather than just return air tickets and hotel bookings, to prove they have no intention of overstaying.
Home Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Mahmood Adam told The Star that other issues pertaining to foreigners residing in Malaysia would also be discussed at length during the meeting.
“The Cabinet committee will decide on the fate of the visa-on-arrival. At this point, I cannot say if it will be abolished or if the facility will be retained because the pros and cons have not been deliberated on as yet. We need to listen to the views of all before coming to a decision.
“As for tighter visa procedures, I do not want to elaborate but suffice to say that we believe the time has come for us to do so,” he said.
It has been reported that thousands of tourists had abused the VOA – which was introduced in 2006 in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2007 – by overstaying.
The facility was extended to tourists from China, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Taiwan and Comoros.
Recently, 10 people, nine of them foreigners with links to international terrorist networks, were arrested under the Internal Security Act.
The Government had indicated that it planned to have a more systematic monitoring and screening of all foreigners who were already in the country, be it foreign workers, expatriates or students, to ensure they posed no threat to the nation’s security.
Deputy Foreign Minister A. Kohi-lan Pillay said plans to tighten visa procedures for foreigners would not cause a “backlash”, adding many countries were strict in issuing visas and yet their tourist arrivals and the number of those investing remained high.
“This is a good way to stop people with negative intentions from entering Malaysia. Those who genuinely want to experience our warmth and hospitality will continue to come, even if they have to do more to get a visa,” he said.
Kohilan said the authorities should consider placing more Immigration attaches at missions abroad, especially in problem spot areas.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Malaysia plans IDs for refugees to prevent arrest
The Jakarta Post
Malaysia plans to issue identification cards to refugees who are recognized by the United Nations, allowing them to stay in the country temporarily and avoid arrest as illegal immigrants.
Malaysia, which has declined to join the U.N. convention on refugees for fear of attracting a flood of migrants, previously has arrested refugees frequently as illegal aliens. Mostly from Myanmar, the refugees often have spent months in overcrowded detention center and faced caning and deportation.
The plans announced Monday reflect a softening of Malaysia's position toward the refugees, although it continues to refuse them official recognition.
Home Ministry Secretary General Mahmood Adam said the government would work with the U.N. refugee agency to issue the cards so immigration enfocement personnel would recognize and spare U.N.-designated refugees.
"As long as they are recognized as refugees by the U.N., they can stay here temporarily," he told The Associate Press. "They cannot work here, but they can do odd jobs."
He could not give an exact timeline but said the initiative was in the "final stage."
According to the U.N. agency, about 75,600 refugees and asylum-seekers were in Malaysia as of November. Most fled persecution in Myanmar.
Yante Ismal, a spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, welcomed the development and further discussions to form a documentation system.
"Proper documentation for refugees is essential to their protection," she said.
All of the refugees in Malaysia are waiting to be resettled to a third countr that officially accepts refugees, which grants them legal status and the right to work.
Cops from sergeants and above to benefit from pay scheme
By SARBAN SINGH
thestar online
thestar online
SEREMBAN: Policemen from the rank of sergeants and above will get a rise in salary and allowances under a new pay scheme.
The new pay and incentives come three years after they were recommended by the Royal Commission to improve the police force.
The biggest gainers will be new inspectors who will get a starting salary of RM2,060 compared to RM1,492 previously. Diploma and STPM holders will also be allowed to join the force directly as sergeants and they will start with a basic salary of RM1,500. A sergeant’s basic salary previously was RM890.
The new scheme has been approved by the Public Service Department following recommendations made by the Royal Commission on the Enhancement of the Management and Operations of the Police.
Sources said new inspectors would have a take home pay of more than RM3,000 which included a special incentive of RM200, cost of living allowance of RM100 to RM200, and a housing allowance of RM420.
They said police inspectors had now been moved to the Professional and Management Group as they were now required to be degree holders.
Policemen will also have another reason to cheer as they will be paid arrears backdated to Jan 1, 2009. Other senior officers will also enjoy increases of between 4% and 8% of their current basic salary and civil service allowance.
“Senior police officers will get one jump in their salaries to the new scheme. This will be from RM200 to RM600,” he said.
The civil service allowance of officers with the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) and Superintendents will be increased by RM50.
Sources said the ranks of Senior Assistant Commissioner I and II (SAC I and SAC II ) have also been abolished and replaced with just SAC. Also abolished is the post of chief inspector.
This means that an inspector can be promoted to the rank of an ASP after passing the relevant examinations.
Citing an example, he said corporals who passed their Efficiency Level Assessment examinations were being paid higher than sergeants who did not pass theirs.
“We cannot have a situation where a lower ranking officer earns more than his superior. That is one reason why the changes were done to the matrix salary system,” he said.
In 2007, the Government increased the salaries of police and military personnel by 9% to 42%. The current increase of salary and incentives is to further enhance the operations and management of the police force.
In an immediate response, Cuepacs president Omar Osman said the Public Service Department must ensure it did not jeopardise the chances of non-officers to be promoted to officers.
“There are some 200 Customs non-officers who have not been promoted to officer level although they have recognised degrees.
“We hope the department will spell out exactly what are the chances of those in the lower rung to be promoted to the Top Professional and management Group once they get their tertiary education. Then it will be a level playing field,” he said.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Digital Divides the Neighborhoods
Source: Gapers Block
Htun-Htun Thing (pronounced: toon-toon ting), a 16-year-old refugee from Burma, spent a recent Sunday afternoon chatting with friends online. His friends are in New York and Florida, Australia and Kuala Lumpur -- anyplace that has taken in members of the ethnic Chin population who have fled the country in the face of human rights violations. Communication is filtered through the standard QWERTY keyboard, so not only are Htun Htun and his friends connecting and preserving a sense of community, they're also becoming more literate, strengthening their written and spoken English with every keystroke, whether they realize it or not. He lives on the North Side of the city, in Albany Park, a neighborhood scattered with immigrant populations from Sarajevo to Seoul, and where broadband access is plentiful.
When Htun Htun was done talking to friends on Sunday, his 10-year-old brother Jacob used the computer to stream episodes of "South Park" online. Later, they used Google and YouTube to teach me about Burma and the Chin population there. Like most people reading this, they know how to search for and find information online.
But just a couple miles to the south, in Humboldt Park and Pilsen, the computer access and fiber optic networks that connect much of the North Side to the opportunities inherent in Web 2.0 dry up. Mexican-born Alfonso Vargas doesn't have a computer or an internet connection. More importantly, he doesn't see the benefit to be gained by having either. He travels from the Humboldt Park studio he shares with his brother and cousin to Truman College, in Lakeview, four days a week for English classes and works in a kitchen in the Loop. "The job is good," he says, "but I need something more. More hours, more money." He makes $8 an hour and found the job by walking the Loop and filling out applications; he has no idea there's a website of classified ads listing jobs by the hundreds, or that he could learn and practice English from his couch, saving on the bus fare to Lakeview.
Do you use the internet at all, I ask him. "Sometimes, when I'm at school," he says, but when I ask about home use he says no. "I don't need that. My brother wants (a computer), but I don't really care." He buys $5 phone cards from a store near his apartment to call back home to Mexico and talk to family on his days off.
Alfonso is, according to studies in Chicago over the past year, typical of many Latino immigrants, whom the studies say are generally isolated from the digital technologies that are increasingly essential for life in the urban United States.
A study of broadband and digital technology use across the city came out over the summer, authored by University of Illinois researcher Karen Mossberger. It highlighted the city's Latino population in neighborhoods like Pilsen and Humboldt Park as among the least connected. While all immigrants must contend with a lack of familiarity, Latinos were singled out as the least likely to bridge the gap -- a phenomenon coined the "digital divide."
Pilsen and Humboldt Park were selected for pilot programs to receive city funding to cross the divide. In Pilsen, non-profit groups have been working over the past year to not only train residents in the use of digital technologies, but to more generally popularize and familiarize people with the potentials of the internet.
Jaime Guzman is running some of those projects out of the Resurrection Project in Pilsen. They run community classes in the neighborhood, and have set up community tech centers and public internet kiosks. "We did our own study," he told me, an informal poll at a local middle school, "and we found that interest is much higher in the (Pilsen) community for using internet technology than the UIC study suggests." It's the access and the know-how that he says needs improving.
Guzman, raised by Mexican-born immigrants just to the west, in Little Village, knows how beneficial regular internet use can be for first and second generation Americans. "For the first half of my life, I learned about American culture from TV," he likes to say; "but later, in my twenties, if I didn't understand something Americana, I just googled it."
Similar efforts are underway on the South Side, in the Auburn-Gresham, Chicago Lawn and Englewood neighborhoods as well -- three communities also singled out in the same study and picked for pilot projects. Internet kiosks have been set up at community centers there as well, and last summer students on break took part in a journalistic endeavor to create a newsletter and digital media that covered community issues.
But Mossberger, the UIC researcher, says that home use is the key. "Using it conveniently and at home, that's where habits are formed and real learning takes place," she says, a statement that may be backed up by Alfonso's lack of enthusiasm for the internet he uses at school in Lakeview, miles away from home at a place he's probably eager to get out of.
Guzman says he's still in conversation with people at the city's Department of Innovation and Technology about expanding broadband access. "We're trying to figure out what the most efficient way to get more people engaged is. We're still studying it. If it turns out that free wifi access is what's needed, we'll try and do that, it's been done in other cities. Right now, we're focused on getting people familiar with the technology, and seeing how it can benefit them."
One way that engagement with the web can clearly help these communities is in terms of economic development. Guzman spoke about a study that found that nearly $12 million leaves Pilsen annually. "There are a lot of reasons why residents spend money elsewhere," he says, "but definitely one is that they don't know about everything that's right here in the community." Part of the pilot program was the construction of a community website, the Pilsen Portal, that highlights community issues as well as local businesses.
With its high-end coffee, its modern decor and its wall space dedicated to showcasing local fine art, he says the Jumping Bean Cafe is the sort of place that Chicagoans from all communities would go out of their way to patronize. "But they have no website, and a lot of people don't know about it." (Jumping Bean Cafe has recently started a blog and a Facebook page). Fogata Village, another neighborhood restaurant with an odd mix of Mexican and Italian menus and a focus on organic ingredients, just recently launched a website. I know that I follow Flaco's Tacos, a South Loop taco shop, on Twitter, and have on more than one occasion made plans specifically to stop by when they tweeted about specials and promotions.
Getting local business communities in under-served neighborhoods engaged online could potentially be a galvanizing force for rejuvenating commerce, attracting and keeping money in those communities -- a potential tool for economic development with more self-direction and empowerment, not to mention accountability, than any TIF project.
This feature is supported in part by a Community News Matters grant from The Chicago Community Trust and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
— Danny Fenster /
Friday, January 22, 2010
Malaysia gets poor marks for human rights
thestar
online
online
KUALA LUMPUR: To ensure it stays in control and in power, the Malaysian government has turned its back on promises to protect people’s rights, said Human Rights Watch.
In its report released yesterday, it said, when Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak took over as Prime Minister in April 2009, he promised to respect the fundamental rights of the people but his government has failed to undertake the systematic reforms needed to fulfil that pledge.
It said the government harassed the Opposition, improperly restricted the right to peaceful expression, association, and assembly and mistreated migrants.
When it comes to human rights, Malaysia is more about rhetoric than reality, it said.
“The Malaysian government appears to be more interested in pursuing short-term political advantage rather than safeguarding rights,” said Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Phil Robertson.
The 612-page World Report 2010 reviewed human rights practices around the world over the last year.
It said the release of a number of Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees early in Najib’s term was a positive development, but stressed that Parliament should repeal the ISA and other repressive laws including the Police Act 1967, which it said, was used to justify a “violent crackdown” on a citizens’ march against the ISA.
The report also said that following the impact of the Internet on the last general election, the government has tried to rein in non-traditional media, putting them and bloggers under closer scrutiny.
It also voiced concern over continued government control on the traditional media and called for the Printing Presses and Publications Act to be rescinded.
The report also criticised the government for failing to distinguish refugees and asylum seekers from undocumented migrants and for its use of an “ill trained, abusive civilian force” (Rela) to crack down on undocumented migrants.
It said detainees were kept under inhumane conditions causing several of them to die last year while dozens were infected with leptospirosis, a disease spread by animal faeces in unclean water.
“How many more migrants have to die in detention before Malaysian policymakers wake up?” said Robertson.
The report also criticised Malaysia for continuing to crimininalise adult consensual sexual behaviour including sodomy and said it is about time the government brought its criminal code into the 21st century.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
26 Myanmar nationals seeking asylum nabbed
thestar online
PORT KLANG: The marine police in Selangor have detained 26 illegal Myanmar nationals, believed to be seeking political asylum, off the Bagan Hailam waters near Pulau Ketam off Port Klang.
Port Klang Commanding officer DSP Norzaid Muhammad Said said all of them were found in a passenger ferry that was on its way from Sungai Lima, Pulau Ketam to Port Klang at 6.30pm on Saturday.
He said 21 of them were holding United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cards issued by a neigbouring country, while the remaining five had no valid travel documents.
“Since the UNHCR card was issued by another country and not Malaysia, they cannot seek political asylum as provided for by the law. We have received information that the 26 had been earlier detained by the authorities in a neighbouring country but were ferried out by a syndicate which used speed boats,” he told reporters at his office here yesterday.
Norzaid said upon arrival from their original destination, the Myanmars, aged between 17 and 56, had stayed in Pulau Ketam for two days before continuing their journey. — Bernama
Friday, January 15, 2010
Immigration to act against employers harbouring illegal foreign workers
the star online
PETALING JAYA: The Immigration Department will begin a nationwide crackdown from Feb 15 on thousands of employers believed to be harbouring or employing illegal workers.
The operation will be carried out with the help of police and Rela.
Currently there are about 1.8 million approved foreign workers in the country, and the department be-lieves there are at least an equal number of illegal ones.
Immigration director-general Datuk Abdul Rahman Othman said the department was already meeting with employer associations and groups before the deadline to “educate” them on the immigration laws and policies for hiring foreign workers.
“From Jan 5, we have been having dialogues with associations such as the Malaysian Employers’ Federation and the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers,” Abdul Rahman said in an interview yesterday.
He said employers should be more responsible and understand that the Immigration Act prohibited keeping workers with expired visas.
“The opportunities for work here and willingness of some employers to keep illegal workers are to be blamed. It’s all about supply and demand,” he added.
Abdul Rahman said no employers had been charged lately as it was difficult to gather enough evidence to enable prosecution.
“To build a proper case, we would need the punch cards, salary slips and contracts between the employers and their workers,” he said.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak told Indian journalists that more than 39,000 Indian tourists, mostly from Chennai, had abused their visa-on-arrival (VOA).
Abdul Rahman said most of the 39,000 “missing” Indians were believed to be in the country’s economic hotspots of the Klang Valley, Penang, Perak and Johor Baru, which had many employment opportunities.
It was reported that 75,645 out of 248,939 foreigners issued with VOAs between September 2006 and September 2008 had misused their visas.
They were from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Sri Lanka, Myan-mar, Nepal, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Abdul Rahman said enforcement was also hindered by the easy assimilation of the southern Indians to Malaysian society.
He added that the three countries with the most number of “missing” citizens in Malaysia were India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, but was unable to furnish any figures.
Tourism Malaysia figures placed arrivals from India at 590,000 in 2009, a 7.1% increase from 2008. Most of them cited sight-seeing, visiting friends and attending conferences as their reasons for coming here.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Employers’ Federation executive director Samsudin Baradan said the federation had warned its members not to retain or hire workers whose visas had expired.
However, Samsudin said it was understandable that some companies were hiring and harbouring workers illegally.
“It is not easy to get foreign workers because of the costs and procedures involved,” he said.
He added that the federation had been pleading with the department to be more consistent in its policies regarding foreign workers.
“The policies keep changing. We only come to know the changes through the media.
“The department should brief our members before implementing such policies,” he said.
For example, Samsudin said many companies were caught by surprise by an April 2009 policy that forced them, instead of their workers, to pay the levy of about RM1,800 per worker per year.
“It’s like you can do it today but tomorrow, you cannot. It is ad hoc, it is a knee-jerk reaction,” he said.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Nearly 40,000 Indian Nationals "Missing" In Malaysia - Najib
----BERNAMADeath of refugees
More than a hundred Chin refugees and asylum-seekers in Malaysia lost their lives since 2000. Most of the dead bodies were buried at KL cemetery with the help of Chin Christian Fellowship and CRC. 80% of the Chin who died in Malaysia were age between 20-30 and 98% were young boys. Most of the deaths happened through accidental death such as knocked down by cars, falling from construction buildings and other work place accidents. No Chin ever got compensation even though dead happened while working or knocked down dead by car because of their illegal immigrant status. There were couples of times that douple deads happened in the same day among the Chin refugees in Malayssia.
Dally funeral
On the very night of March 20, 2007 a Chin refugee girl name Dally Sui ( age 7 ) disappeared from the family rented flat while her parents and other Chin friends were having farwell worship services inside the house as they are about to be resettled to United States on the next day. Her sudden disappearance delayed her family departure and lodged a police report. After one week from her mystery disapperance, Dally decomposed body was found at the bushes which located about 500 meters from their rented flat. Both her hands from her wrist-angkles were cut off. About two thousands Chin refugees turned out in Kuala Lumpur christian cemetery in April 2007 at Dally funeral. No suspect has been detained by police in connection to Dally brutal murder.
surviving in jungle
As refugees are considered illegal immigrants by Malay government, hundreds of Chin refugees who are in jungle are struggling with even a daily meal. Like in this camp, out of 151 refugees, only 25 of them are working in a farm who contribute all their wages to the camp. If local employers delayed wages and even cheated them, most refugees in the jungle camps are in serious difficulty. Most of the time, they consume a single soup for the day.
Chin refugee girls in jungle
Many Chin refugee women chose to stay in jungle camps and help in cooking for several men who are also in the camp. Especially women who were once arrested and deported to Thai border know the risk and danger of arrest and deportation to the border. Most human smugglers in Thai border are drug-addicted male who are armed with guns and knives are not only violent but often abuse women deportees. Most young women who were deported to Thai border face physical abuse by the smugglers in the border jungle between Thai and Malaysia
Hygience
Even if most refugees in Malaysia sequestered inside deep jungle to evade authority arrest, the ragged living condition with the water they used to bathe and also consume on daily basis seriously affected their health. Plunging deeper into jungle from proximity of towns and cities is another problem faced by refugees in time of sickness, injuries and other urgencies.
Food they eat
Most of the time, Chin refugees in Malaysia jungle camps eat single soup for the day as they depend each other upon odd job incomes which they earned from local vegetable farms. The security problem for refugees in Malaysia is the most dangerous risk which refugees face everyday. When local employers cheated wages of refugees due to their undocumented status and the government harsh stance against illegal immigrants, thousands of refugees in Malaysia struggle to survive with minimal availability on their very hands.
CRC volunteers
The work of CRC volunteer is to reach wherever the Chin refugees and asylum-seekers stay whether these are in jungles or in cities. Spent most of the time with refugees to assist in their welfare need. CRC volunteers are working round the clock 24/7 for refugee welfare need. To educate people and encourage asylum-seekers lest they become so distressful and lose hope. Strenghthen community to build self-reliance among themselves instead of depending upon others. CRC is well aware that UNHCR could not solve all the problems of Chin refugees in Malaysia and work very hard for the Chin refugees in Malaysia.
Chin Refugee Centre
Above is Chin Refugee Women & Children Shelter. Below is UNHCR gate where hundreds of refugees waited outside to approach UNHCR office in Malaysia to apply for refugee status since they have nowhere to go except knowing they have a home in UN in this foreign land
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