Suffering of workers bound for Malaysia should be alleviated

Zahirul Islam's home is in Kaliganj, Jhenaidah. Hoping to go to Malaysia, he had been waiting at Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for four days until Friday (May 31). Despite having a visa, he did not get a ticket. May 31 was his last day to enter Malaysia. Failing to get a ticket on the final day, he told the media that brokers had taken 550,000 taka each from him and five others. Crying, Zahirul said, "I sold my land to pay for going to Malaysia. The brokers have ruined us."

Habibur Rahman is a resident of Natore. He has been waiting at Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport for three days to go to Malaysia. As of 5 PM, Friday, he still hasn't received his plane ticket. The agency through which he paid 650,000 taka for going to Malaysia is no longer answering his calls.

This sorrow is not just of Zahirul Islam or Habibur Rahman. It is the same for thousands of other workers like them. Last March, the Malaysian government announced that foreign workers with visas must enter Malaysia by May 31. Despite having nearly two and a half months, the Bangladeshi government could not ensure sufficient flights for workers with visas. Instead of arranging additional flights, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment requested an extension of the entry deadline for the workers. However, Malaysia did not respond to this request and closed its labor market to workers from all countries on May 31.

Meanwhile, by Thursday (May 30), nearly 20,000 Bangladeshi workers had arrived at Kuala Lumpur's two international terminals but were unable to enter the country. They are staying on the airport floors, increasing the suffering for both the workers and their employers. Employers are also facing difficulties in identifying their workers. The workers have to wait for long periods. Until a new decision is made, the Southeast Asian country will not hire any foreign workers. As a result, the Bangladeshis who paid recruiting agencies and brokers but could not reach their dream destination are in extreme trouble.

However, the Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment, along with the organization of recruiting agencies, has assured that arrangements will be made to refund the money. However, based on past experiences, workers do not trust this assurance. The government has set a maximum cost of 78,990 taka to send workers to Malaysia. However, research shows that the average cost to workers has been 544,000 taka. The agencies operating within the cycle claim that agencies outside the cycle are responsible for the additional costs to the workers. Engaging in unhealthy competition, they have purchased demand letters from Malaysia at inflated prices and engaged in visa trading.

The Ministry of Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment has reportedly not initiated separate investigations into various allegations regarding sending workers to Malaysia. However, the ministry intends to discuss these allegations at a joint technical committee meeting between the two countries. A request for the meeting has already been sent to Malaysia. The date for the meeting has not been finalized yet. Malaysia is the largest labor market for Bangladesh. Over the past one and a half years, after Saudi Arabia the highest number of workers has gone to Malaysia, more than four million. The closure of this labor market raises concerns about the significant impact on Bangladesh's remittance earnings. Without internal efforts from the Bangladesh government, solving the migrant workers' issues with the Malaysian government will not be possible. We hope the Bangladesh government will take appropriate steps to alleviate the suffering of Bangladeshi workers.