16 Malaysians nabbed in Indonesia

KUALA LUMPUR: Indonesian au­thorities have arrested 16 Malay­sians in Palembang, south Sumatra, for abusing their social visas.

According to the Foreign Minis­try, all of them were detained on Jan 9.

The ministry said that officials from the Malaysian Consulate General in Medan had visited them three times – on Jan 16, Jan 21 and Feb 14 – to ensure their welfare, basic needs and medical facilities were always preserved.

“Following that, Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah had also sent a letter to his counterpart, Retno Marsudi, on Feb 18 requesting the Indonesian government’s cooperation to pay attention to the welfare and health issues of detainees and to speed up the legal process.

“Officials from the Consulate General in Medan will make ano­ther visit in the near future to hold discussions with the prosecutor and the Palembang court to facilitate and speed up the legal process,” the ministry said in a statement yesterday.

“We appreciate the cooperation given by the Indonesian govern­ment in facilitating the consular affairs of all detainees,” added the ministry.

The ministry also reminded Ma­­lay­sians to comply with the immigration regulations of the country they were visiting and apply for a visa in accordance with the purpose of the visit.