The Immigration Department will organise a Special Registration Programme at certain locations that have become the
preferred settlements and working areas for Bangladeshi nationals in Malaysia.
The programme, to be held with the cooperation of Bangladesh High Commissioner’s Office, followed the meeting between Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Bangladesh High Commissioner to Malaysia, Atiqur Rahman, on June 29.
Home Ministry deputy secretary-general (Registration and Immigration) Alwi Ibrahim said the high commissioner would personally participate in the programme to identify the locations.
“The programme will begin as soon as the locations have been identified,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said the programme would be implemented by taking into consideration the reports lodged by Bangladeshi workers who had fallen victim to a certain syndicate.
“At the same time, most of the Bangladeshi workers, who make up the second highest number of immigrants in the country, are also found without valid travel documents.
“So, the initiative will coordinate the issuance of documents needed for illegal immigrants allowed to work here under the bleaching programme,” he said.
Alwi said the initiative was part of the government’s total solution programme for illegal immigrants (6P).
The 6P programme involves six action plans, which are registering, legalising, pardoning, monitoring, enforcing and deporting illegal immigrants.
It will be carried out by registering illegal immigrants using a biometric system to track their movements in the country.
The objective of the bleaching exercise was to collect data on how many illegal immigrants are in the country, how many work in sectors allowed to recruit foreigners and other information that are hoped to be used to reduce
social problems related to illegal immigrants.
– Bernama