C
Cao Pi
Guest
Malaysia triples jail time for people smugglers
<cite>By JULIA ZAPPEI, Associated Press Writer</cite> - <abbr class="timedate" title="Thursday, July 29">Thursday, July 29</abbr>
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia is tripling prison sentences and imposing stiff fines for people smugglers, but activists warned Thursday that more measures were needed to stem the exploitation of migrant laborers. Parliament's upper house is expected to approve changes to strengthen laws against human trafficking next week, a Parliament official said on condition of anonymity, citing protocol.
The amendments were passed by Parliament's lower house earlier this month, and the senate's approval will enable them to be enforced. Malaysia has become a magnet for people from impoverished or war-torn places looking for work here illegally or seeking a transit point to sneak into other nations, especially Australia. Officials say these people sometimes fall prey to forced labor and sexual exploitation by human trafficking networks. The government says it has rescued more than 1,200 such victims since 2008 and brought 155 cases before the courts.
Nine people have been convicted so far for people smuggling. The changes to the law effectively triple the maximum prison sentence for offenders who help foreigners enter or leave Malaysia without valid travel documents to 15 years. If the migrants are exploited, treated cruelly or placed in danger, the penalty can be as high as 20 years in prison. The maximum fine for human trafficking will be increased by 10 times to 1 million ringgit ($310,000). Those convicted will also have to pay the government all the profits they made and fork out the cost of hosting and deporting the migrants.
The changes are also expected to make it easier for prosecutors to secure convictions. Nora Murat, director of human rights group Amnesty International's Malaysian chapter, said authorities should also provide victims of people smuggling with better legal assistance and counseling to build strong cases against traffickers.
"The problem is the support system for the act is not there," Murat said, noting that there are insufficient government-supported shelters for human trafficking victims. Most are held at a shelter in a detention center for illegal immigrants, and activists fear they might not cooperate with authorities if they face ill treatment.
