TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – More than 200 Indonesian citizens in the immigration detention centers in Sabah, Malaysia, will be soon repatriated following the report of the Sovereign Migrant Workers Coalition (KBMB) which stated that 149 Indonesians died in Sabah detention facilities.
After meetings with Malaysian immigration authorities, the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry found that many detention centers in Malaysia were overloaded. Thus, one of the solutions is to accelerate the repatriation.
“Inshallah there will be the repatriation of more than 200 Indonesian citizens who are in the Sabah detention center from Tawau to Nunukan. Inshallah we can do it this month,” said the ministry’s director for the protection of Indonesian nationals, Judha Nugraha, during a press conference held virtually on Thursday, July 14, 2022.
Previously reported, the KBMB’s latest report in 2022 revealed that many Indonesians being held at Sabah immigration detention centers received inhumane treatment and physical abuse until death.
The Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry confirmed some time ago that 18 people died at the immigration detention facilities in Sabah throughout 2021 and seven more from January to June 2022. The main cause of the death was delayed repatriation due to travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The data was similar to that issued by the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta, declining the report of the 149 deaths by KBMB. The Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry assured that the Malaysian Embassy had offered apologies.
“We have obtained the detailed data and we are studying it. We have also asked our lawyers in Tawau, Malaysia to study these cases from a legal perspective,” said Judha.
DANIEL AHMAD
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