The Malaysian Immigration and Foreign Ministry officials had discussed this repatriation-related plan with their counterparts from the Indonesian Embassy on May 28, Malaysian Defence Minister Sabri Yaakob stated in Putrajaya on Saturday.
Prior to their repatriation, all Indonesians currently housed at several detention houses in the neighboring country would be examined using the Rapid Test Kit Antigen (RTK Antigen) method to check for the presence of coronavirus.
Officials at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur were invited to observe the RTK Antigen-related events, Yaakob remarked.
The first phase of repatriation will be conducted on June 6 involving 2,189 undocumented Indonesian migrant workers staying at several immigration detention centers in the Malaysian Peninsula and Sarawak as well as 672 others in Sabah.
The first batch of 450 undocumented migrant workers would be flown back to Indonesia through Jakarta, Medan, and Surabaya on June 6, while 445 others would return through those three Indonesian cities on June 10, he remarked.
The repatriation of 1,294 undocumented migrant workers to Medan would also be conducted by sea on June 22, he stated, adding that 2,623 Indonesians would be part of the second phase of repatriation.
The Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur will provide the requisite documents for repatriation to Indonesians, who had yet to possess legal travel documents.
On May 29, the Malaysian Government had highlighted the agreement of the governments of Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Nepal to its proposal to repatriate their illegal migrant workers and undocumented citizens that tested negative for COVID-19.
Like several other countries across the globe, Malaysia has also been striving to flatten the curve of COVID-19 cases and to deal with the socio-economic impacts of the virus that initially struck the Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019.
The Malaysian government has enforced a movement control order (MCO) to slow down the spread of this COVID-19 pandemic.
Related news: Marsudi confirms 103,774 abroad-returned Indonesians as of May 27
Related news: 111 Indonesians arriving from Sabah test negative for COVID-19
Related news: Malaysia likely to repatriate 421 undocumented Indonesian workers
Translator: Agus S, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
