1. Malaysia's industrialisation strategy was premised on the supply of cheap, renewable, and temporary labour. Foreign migrant workers have been the mainstay of Malaysia’s economic growth. Unofficial sources estimate that there were about three million migrant workers working in plantations, construction sites factories and households until the onslaught of the economic crisis when the government began repatriating foreign workers in 1998. Half these were legal, ie., those with 'guest worker' status confronting the threat of being thrown into detention camps as a constant form of punishment. many of these workers are from Indonesia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Burma. [according to Tenaganita (a women's rights organisation) "migrant workers ended up in detention camps after they were cheated by fraudulent recruiting agents or their passports were withheld by errant employers even though they entered the country legally". this is a standard practice across many Asian countries, including places like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait which rely on 'guest workers' (ie., workers with no formal protections) from Asia. for publishing the Memorandum on the widespread practices of torture and abuse in the detention camps, the director of Tenaganita, Irene Fernandez was arrested and charged in 1996 for 'false reporting'. (i do not know whether the charges were upheld.)]
2. national workers can be in unions, except for those defined as 'pioneer enterprises', eg, electronics, where unions have been banned since the 1970s, and this sector accounts for around 40% of malaysian exports, and where most workers are women. in 1988 the government relaxed this policy and said that workers could join unions of their choice, vigorous protests from employers quickly reversed the decision. moreover, there are constant retrenchments of union organisers and unionised plants in other sectors, and a preference for company unions by employers when pushed to recognise a union. so-called foreign workers are not allowed to join unions or hold union office. The Internal Security Act, the Official Secrets Act, the Printing Press and Publications Act, and the Sedition Act function to curtail union organising, as in the arrest of Fernandez (above). The Minister of Human Resources can order the suspension, for a maximum six-month period, of any trade union which, in his opinion, "is, or is being used for purposes prejudicial to or incompatible with, the interests of, the security of, or public order in, Malaysia, or any part thereof". Unions cannot use their funds for political purposes. The law includes a comprehensive list of matters which can be termed as "political objects".
3. in 1997, the Malaysian govt announced that 400,000 workers in "non-productive" sectors (including the service sector) would have to leave by August 1998, irrespective of whether they had valid visas or work permits. No foreigners would be permitted to work as domestic help in families with a non-working wife. Where foreign domestic workers are permitted, they must be between the ages of twenty-five and forty-five and to come from the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, or Sri Lanka only, with the Philippines having low priority.(31) In January 1998, the government further announced that no new work permits would be given to foreigners in shopping complexes, hotels, and restaurants, among other sectors. The construction industry would be closely monitored and migrant workers could only be retained to complete an ongoing project.
4. in 1998, the Malaysian Govt announced plans to deport one million of these 'guest workers' to Indonesia. An editorial in the New Straits Times of Malaysia endorsed the government's plan to repatriate one million Indonesians (subsequently scaled down), stating that "Malaysians will no doubt support such policy, for clearly we are now in the throes of being swamped by foreign workers, bringing with them social, economic, political and security problems for the country." On March 16, 1998, announcing plans to deport 17,000 workers immediately, Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was quoted in the Jakarta Post as saying, "We must make sure there are jobs available for Malaysians. Charity begins at home." In February 1998, nearly 4,000 illegal immigrants were arrested in Malaysia. In the first two weeks of March, the government arrested over 3,000 more illegal entrants, most of whom were Indonesian, according to a March 21 report in the Jakarta newspaper Republika. In a meeting with President Soeharto in early March, Prime Minister Mahatir withdrew his earlier promise not to deport laid off Indonesians in light of the increasing numbers of illegal migrants continuing to arrive. On March 25, Malaysian authorities announced that two hundred legal foreign workers in the service and construction industries would be deported once their work permits expired. Nineteen thousand illegal aliens have been deported since January. According to an AP report, a series of riots broke out in March in immigration detention centers where Indonesian migrants are being held. Witnesses reported the use of batons, water cannons, and tear gas against the detainees, and gunshots were heard.(34) At least eight Indonesians and one police official reportedly died in the violence, with many more injured. The worst of these incidents was a riot at the Semenyih Detention camp on March 26. The violence did not slow deportation efforts, however: on the same day of the Semenyih riot, over 1,500 Indonesian illegals were removed from four different camps, including Semenyih, according to the police. Victims of the violence were also apparently not spared, as four injured persons died while being transported to a ship that was to take them back to Indonesia.
Angela _________