The migrant workers were deported for not having the proper documents required for employment in another country, he said. Those who were deported for consuming drugs told the immigration officers that they, at first, used the addictive drugs to make friends, the officer added.
Before being deported, the Malaysian authorities sent many of them to temporary detention centers, Wibowo said.
The local immigration authorities record the names of all deportees before handing them over to the Indonesian Migrant Workers Placement, Protection and Monitoring Agency (BP3TKI) in Nunukan District, he added.
The Malaysian authorities have repeatedly deported Indonesian migrants who have been involved in drug cases during their stay there, ANTARA noted.
Related news: Malaysia deports 90 Indonesian workers
For example, on May 24, 2019, Malaysia deported 21 Indonesian migrant workers through Nunukan District for drug-related cases.
They were sent back along with several hundreds of Indonesian migrant workers after they served jail terms in Malaysia, the acting chief of BP3TKI in Nunukan, Arbain, said.
Malaysia has been home to nearly two million Indonesian migrants for a long time. This is the biggest number of Indonesians working abroad.
However, many of them have no proper work permits because they may have entered the country illegally.
On June 15, 2019, the Riau Islands police were able to thwart an attempt to smuggle Indonesian workers into Malaysia via Batam.
The illegal workers arrived in Batam by ship and were supposed to continue the journey to Malaysia when they were detected, Spokesman of the Riau Islands Police, Senior Commissioner S. Erlangga said. (INE)
EDITED BY INE
Related news: 39 workers of East Nusa Tenggara deported from Malaysia
Related news: Report about exodus from Nunukan to Malaysia untrue: Ministry
Translator: Rusman, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
