The 25-minute episode produced under Al Jazeera’s “101 East” weekly segment was the main show that led to his winning the award, the other being a story on West Papua’s deforestation.

In the episode which aired on July 3, Al Jazeera focussed on the Malaysian government’s crackdown on migrant workers, claiming that the authorities had treated migrants poorly during the movement control order period to contain the spread of Covid-19.

Subsequently, seven of its journalists were questioned by a Bukit Aman police interrogation team for various alleged offences, including sedition, defamation and improper use of network facilities.

Ambrose was among four of the journalists from the 101 East team who had their work permits cancelled and told to go home.

The controversy also saw Bangladeshi Md Rayhan Kabir, who was featured as the whistleblower on alleged discrimination against migrant workers during the lockdown, having his work permit revoked and detained.

The panel of judges in London described the work as honest, fearless and thorough, adding that Ambrose’s exceptional reporting places the stories and voices that all too often go unheard at the top of the news agenda and demands answers on their behalf.

Commenting on his award, Ambrose said: “It’s an honour to receive this award, particularly in a year when the pandemic has posed such serious challenges to global news coverage.

“As governments around the world continue to impose greater restrictions on the media, revealing what is going on behind the scenes has become more vital than ever.

“You can’t do great journalism without brave leaders who speak truth to power. Despite immense pressure put on Rayhan, he never recanted his testimony,” he said.

The documentary has also won a Telly Award in America and a Human Rights Press Award from the Hong Kong Correspondents Club. The Global Investigative Journalism Network listed the episode as one of the best pieces of reporting in 2020. It was also shortlisted for the One World Media’s Coronavirus Reporting Award.

101 East, which had been producing a weekly 25-minute programme out of its Asia headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on current affairs in the Asia Pacific region since 2007, has since been operating from abroad.

However, the web and Arabic teams together with the finance and human resources departments are still operating from its Kuala Lumpur office.