The previously confidential communication, now available online, is said to have gone unanswered for 60 days.
In a March 28 letter addressed to Malaysia’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, four UN experts said they were concerned about the deceptive practice of fake companies recruiting workers from Bangladesh, purportedly for employment in Malaysia.
The letter claimed that the workers were forced into paying exorbitant recruitment fees, pushing them into debt bondage.
The experts noted that, on arrival, many Bangladeshi migrant workers find that jobs previously promised to them are non-existent. The workers’ plight then forces them into overstaying their visa, risking arrest, detention, ill-treatment and deportation, they added.
Stressing that the situations described by these workers may amount to human trafficking and forced labour, the experts said the reported violations align with forced labour indicators established by the International Labour Organization.
They also called on Malaysia to fulfil its international obligations by protecting the affected migrant workers from human rights abuses, warning that they face a potentially “alarming humanitarian situation” due to the risk of further exploitation and destitution.
The experts urged the government to give “urgent attention” to the issue by ensuring that all affected migrants are protected from deportation while court cases involving assessments of whether they are victims of trafficking or have been subjected to labour exploitation are ongoing.
They also said the migrants should be given basic assistance to meet their daily needs – including adequate housing, food and other basic items – during their period of unemployment.
Highlighting the names of several businesses believed to be operating as bogus employers, the letter claimed that areas such as Cheras and Chow Kit, both in Kuala Lumpur, and Pengerang, in Johor, have a notable concentration of such workers.
“We believe that the wider public should be alerted to the potential implications of the above-mentioned allegations,” they said.
“We would appreciate receiving a response within 60 days. Past this delay, this communication and any response received from (the Malaysian) government will be made public via the communications reporting website.”
The experts also said the contents of the letter would be made available in their usual report to the UN Human Rights Council.
It reminded the government that failure to provide aid and protection to duped migrant workers would violate the Asean Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, signed in Kuala Lumpur in 2015.
The letter was co-authored by the UN’s special rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences, Tomoya Obokata; the UN’s special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Gehad Madi; the UN’s special rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Siobhán Mullally; and the UN’s chair-rapporteur of the working group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, Robert McCorquodale.
Numerous unanswered questions
The letter sought information about the predicament faced by the duped migrants and assistance given by the government in terms of housing, food, health services, legal and social support.
The government was also asked to explain how private recruitment agencies are regulated, what measures are taken to address and dismantle exploitative migrant worker recruitment networks, and whether there are measures in place to stop bogus companies from issuing permits to migrant workers.
The UN experts also asked for details and results – where available – of investigations, prosecution or criminal charges against government officials, employers or other actors in relation to the allegations, including those pertaining to corruption.
The government was likewise asked about the status of cooperation between the Malaysian and Bangladeshi governments to effectively combat criminal networks and facilitate fair and ethical migrant worker recruitment.
A similar letter, sent to Bangladesh’s permanent representative to the UN, also appears to have gone unanswered.
Independent migrant worker rights specialist Andy Hall said the failure of the Malaysian and Bangladesh governments to respond to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights’ communications within the 60-day timeline points to a lack of accountability, and might be taken to suggest that they endorse human trafficking.
“Based on the many years of unsuccessfully engaging the Malaysian government on these and many other similar cases of alleged human trafficking and forced labour, I conclude that a failed migrant management and recruitment system continues to exist in the country,” he said.
FMT has contacted Wisma Putra and the office of Malaysia’s permanent representative to the UN in Geneva for comment.