MoU on labour recruitment to Malaysia soon
Bangladesh and Malaysia will soon sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on labour recruitment from Bangladesh at low migration cost and protection of the migrants.
“Malaysia will take a decision in its next cabinet meeting soon on the procedure of labour recruitment and details of the MoU,” Bangladesh's labour Attaché Mantu Kumar Biswas told The Daily Star from Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
He said this referring to the discussion between Malaysian Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein and Bangladesh's Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain in Putrajaya yesterday.
Malaysia's official news agency, Bernama, quoting Hishammuddin, reported that the MoU will be meant to combat crimes like human trafficking, money laundering and drugs and weapons smuggling.
“The MoU will be signed soon after both countries create a mechanism at the operational level whereby political will between Malaysia and Bangladesh can be translated into an action plan involving the respective authorities,” said Hishammuddin.
Malaysia, home to over four lakh Bangladeshis, stopped recruiting workers from Bangladesh from early 2009, citing global economic recession as the cause. But sources said malpractice in the labour recruitment process actually led to the freeze.
During 2007-08, workers had to spend around Tk 2 lakh for the jobs though the government-fixed rate was Tk 84,000.
In many cases, more workers were hired than required, leading to joblessness and underemployment. On return, the workers even complained of confinement in rooms without adequate food.
Later, many of the workers became irregular. However, Malaysia declared an amnesty allowing the foreign workers to get regularised or return home without penalty.
Now, Malaysia is mulling to reopen its labour market for Bangladeshis.
Mosharraf, leading a delegation to Malaysia, was scheduled to discuss the procedures of labour recruitment with Hishammuddin and Malaysia's human resources minister.
As there were a lot of malpractices and cases of labour abuses in Malaysia, Mosharraf had opined to send workers under government arrangements.
Sources in Malaysia and Bangladesh said both countries, however, are considering recruitment of workers through the private sector.
They warned that the situation will turn out to that of 2007-08 unless both the countries have a foolproof recruitment process.
Meanwhile, Hishammuddin appreciated Bangladesh's cooperation during the foreign workers' amnesty programme, saying, “It a testimony of a strategic partnership between Malaysia as a labour recipient country and Bangladesh as a labour sending country.”
Such cooperation was pivotal to ensure orderly movement of foreign workers into Malaysia and that workers are not exploited or taken advantage of by unscrupulous individual or agents, Bernama reported.
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