3,000 illegals take up amnesty deal

The Star

PUTRAJAYA: More than 3,000 illegal foreign workers have taken up the amnesty deal under the “voluntary deportation programme” since July 21.

The number is expected to reach 30,000 by year-end, Immigration Department deputy director-general Datuk Sakib Kusmi said.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had announced last week that 200,000 Indonesian illegal workers could have a safe one-way trip home for Hari Raya by paying a minimum RM300 compound fine.

He said the offer was open from July 18 to Dec 31 to protect them from syndicates who charged them up to RM2,000.

Before the amnesty deal, each illegal worker caught for overstaying had to pay a maximum compound fine of RM2,000.

Sakib said a total of 15,109 illegal foreign workers had also surrendered to the department in the first half of the year.

They included 2,028 from Sri Lanka, 1,959 from Nepal, 1,858 from India, 1,629 from Philippines, 1,606 from Indonesia, 1,016 from Myanmar, 1,009 from Pakistan, 952 from Bangladesh and 948 from Vietnam.

He said the department would review the effectiveness of the programme over three months.

Sakib said those who surrendered would undergo biometric processing to ensure that they did not return to Malaysia using another identity.

The amnesty deal is another initiative of the Government to weed out illegal immigrants following the 6P Bersepadu programme conducted from October 2011 to January this year.