Saturday, May 2, 2020

Failing of PN Government


I know a lot of people will try to defend this treatment of migrants and say we have to look after our own interests but this is despicable so don’t even try. Don’t even. This is what a police state looks like. And it is built on OUR fear.
As they were pulling people out of buildings the police shouted at others to look away. Don’t look. Don’t see. Because they must have known the way they were treating these people was unjust and ugly. Don’t look. Don’t see.
If history has taught us anything it is that during times of crisis bad governments whip up hate against communities to distract from their own failings. This what is happening now and not just in this incident in Masjid Jamek.
And please don’t tell me ‘we have to look after our own’. What has that to do with treating people with humanity. Would they have lined us up like this and forced us terrified into vans separating families from each other? They arrested children as young as 4 years old.
And now they are in crowded detention camps with no masks, no social distancing, no proper sanitation, stripped of their phones, their rights, their dignity.
If we think this is not the way to treat Malaysian blue IC holders why is it ok to treat to treat migrants and refugees like this?
And why should we as Malaysians with blue ICs be treated any differently from other people? We are not so special. It’s a piece of laminated plastic. It doesn’t make us better than the rest of humanity.
For years in Malaysia we have struggled and fought against inequality. We went on Bersih rallies to protest inequality. We asked for an end to race based politics because we felt the sting of discrimination or because we saw our friends being discriminated against. We said kitajagakita. Race based discrimination is the most despicable thing about our county and many I know oppose it. But we are ok with people being discriminated against on the basis of their nationality? We are ok with migrants and refugees being discriminated against and treated so appallingly? How is this any better?
I don’t care whether they are ‘legal’ or not in your eyes. They are not illegal, they are undocumented. They are legally human. That’s all that matters.
Please look what is happening in our country. Please see.

Jo Kukathas

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CRACKDOWN ON MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES AN APPALLING VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Responding to the news that the Immigration Department and Royal Malaysian Police have carried out massive raids on migrant workers and refugees in Menara City One, Malayan Mansion and other residences in the vicinity currently under Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO), Preethi Bhardwaj, Interim Executive Director of Amnesty International Malaysia said,
“This mass detention of refugees and migrants is an appalling violation of human rights and the persecution of an already marginalised community. All refugees and migrants, documented or not, have a right to be treated humanely and their right to health protected.”
“This is a clear abuse of power on the part of the authorities. Mass arrests being carried out in the middle of a pandemic are terrible enough, but reports of detainees being cramped into small vans, not provided masks, unable to practise social distancing is equally alarming. Children have also been taken into custody, their protection flagrantly disregarded,” continued Bhardwaj.
“We call on the Malaysian government to immediately end its attack on refugees and migrant workers and treat all people with dignity and respect. During a global public health crisis, detention solely for migration-related reasons is unjustifiable. The authorities must urgently release those detained and focus on combatting the COVID-19 pandemic instead of using it as an excuse to further violate the rights of vulnerable communities.” concluded Bhardwaj.
BACKGROUND
On 20 April, Minister of Defence Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that eight areas in Kuala Lumpur would be placed under the Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO).On 1 May hundreds of Immigration Department officers and personnel carried out multiple raids on migrants within residences in Kuala Lumpur, currently under the enhanced movement control order. They were aided by members of the police, armed forces, Health Ministry and the Civil Defence Force (APM). The Immigration Department has yet to issue a statement to justify the raids.
Malaysia has been under the Movement Control Order since 18 March 2020, enacted to combat the spread of COVID-19.


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