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Malaysia’s Immigration Department has conducted one of its largest recent operations against undocumented migrant workers, detaining 1,196 foreign nationals, including Bangladeshis, in a single-day raid.
The operation was carried out on Wednesday (September 9) at 40 factories across four industrial areas, according to local reports.
The authorities inspected the documents of 2,159 people during the operation. Of them, 1,196 were detained for allegedly lacking valid documents, overstaying their visas or violating visa conditions.
The detainees, aged between 18 and 63, included 946 men and 250 women. They were nationals of Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, Myanmar, India and Nepal.
The Immigration Department has not yet disclosed the number of detainees from each country.
Apart from the migrant workers, legal notices were issued to 37 Malaysian citizens, including employers, over allegations of employing or harbouring undocumented migrants.
The detainees have been placed at immigration detention depots for further investigation and legal proceedings.
A total of 715 officials took part in the operation, alongside members of the Royal Malaysia Police, the National Registration Department and the Civil Defence Force.
The raid was conducted following intelligence surveillance based on complaints from local residents.
Meanwhile, representatives of embassies of Bangladesh and several other countries have recently appeared in video messages posted on the Malaysian Immigration Department’s verified Facebook page, urging undocumented migrant workers to return to their respective countries.
