Immigration dept ready for border reopening

JOHOR BAHRU: The Immigration Department is ready for the reopening of the country's borders, especially in receiving foreign tourists, said its director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud.

He said among the main international entry points for the purpose were the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and the Sultan Iskandar Building in Johor.

"On March 5 (yesterday), all auto gates were reactivated and officers at international entry points who were previously sent to temporary depots during the pandemic period were recalled," he told reporters during a large-scale joint operation with the Johor Immigration Department late last night.

He said the department expected an increase in the entry of foreign tourists and would tighten control to ensure there was no abuse of the social visit passes and prevent the issue of overstaying.

"They (tourists) must submit proof that they have a place to live in Malaysia, sufficient amount of money and travel itinerary," he said.

On last night's operation, he said immigration officers raided three premises around Johor Bahru including a factory in Senai Industrial Park where 185 foreign workers were inspected and 64 Indian nationals registered under the Labour Recalibration (RTK) programme were nabbed for working in the unauthorised sector.

"The government's policy does not allow Indian nationals to work in factories. They can only work in certain sectors. Preliminary investigations found that all the detained Indian workers were registered in the RTK programme in April 2021 and we suspect that the factory used the services of agents to register the workers," said Khairul Dzaimee.

He said 16 workers from Nepal, Myanmar (three) and Bangladesh (two) were also detained during the operation for not having valid documents.

In addition, he said 14 Thailand nationals, one Laos national and one Myanmar national were detained in a raid on two spa centres that offered prostitution services.

All the detained individuals were taken to the Immigration lock-up and the employers involved will be investigated under Section 55E of the Immigration Act 1959/63.

-- BERNAMA