Wan Junaidi: Malaysians not mastermind in human trafficking

Investigators removing the remains from the graves site on Thursday night

SIK: Malaysians are not the masterminds although they might be involved in the human trafficking activities at the border, said Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

“They might have knowledge of the trafficking activities and could be accomplices but they are not the organisers,” Wan Junaidi said at the Belantik Immigration Detention Depot.

He described the modus operandi of the human trafficking syndicate to that of 17th century African slavery in the America.

“Like human beings exported to the US back then, that is exactly what is happening here and it has to be an international solution to this,” he told a press conference.

On the detainees housed in Belantik, Wan Junaidi said the government spends RM18,642 a day on food four times a day on the 2,868 foreigners. 

The Belantik depot has a capacity of 1,000 but now accomodates 1,107 Rohingyas who arrived in Langkawi a few weeks ago.

On the issue of the stateless Rohingyas, Wan Junaidi said a lot of political talk were going on but the process of repatriation of the migrants has been slow.

"It is not easy to do that and Myanmar won’t work with us.

“I have been meeting their ambassadors and it was difficult to discuss with them. They limit the talk on this,” said Wan Junaidi who earlier went to Wang Kelian, Perlis to check on the exhumation work of the mass graves.