Home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said there are 25 immigration depots nationwide, including temporary ones, which could house a total of 20,750 detainees, as of Sept 30.

“There are currently 17,326 detainees (in these depots), who account for 82.5% of the total capacity,” he said in a written parliamentary reply.

They consist of 12,231 men, 3,003 women and 2,092 children.

Saifuddin was responding to Suhaimi Abdullah (PN-Langkawi), who wanted to know what proactive measures the government was taking to prevent overcrowding in the depots.

He said the immigration department granted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) access to detainees on a case-by-case basis, and also facilitated the release of detainees holding UNHCR cards.

Additionally, NGOs such as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Malaysian Red Crescent Society, and others have been granted access to detainees.

“This access is subject to written applications approved by the immigration director-general,” he said.

He said 264 NGOs visited the depots between January and September “to ensure the detainees’ welfare and provide necessary assistance”.

In March, Saifuddin had revealed that there were about 13,000 undocumented migrants in 19 immigration detention depots across the country.

He said the only time when the depots were congested was during the Covid-19 pandemic as the government could not repatriate the migrants.