Photo: Bernama
KUALA LUMPUR: Eight Malaysian companies have been slapped with Withhold Release Orders (WRO) by the US Customs and Border Protection in the past two years, says Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Awang Hashim (pic).
The companies belonged to the palm oil and rubber sector.
He was responding to a question from R. Sivarasa (PH-Sungai Buloh) on the names and business fields of Malaysian companies that have been subjected to a WRO or Findings by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) from 2019 until now.
Sivarasa also asked about the actions taken by the government to ensure the order imposed on Sime Darby Bhd dated Jan 28, 2022, will be withdrawn by the CBP.
“We have two companies which were taken out from the WRO list,” Awang (PN-Pendang) said during the Oral Question-and-Answer session in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (July 28).
He said there are 11 evaluation criteria that evaluates forced labour and human trafficking in labour practices.
“We have used each of the 11 items to ensure that forced labour and human trafficking does not happen in labour practices in Malaysia,” he said.
He added that the ministry has also taken steps to amend labour laws such as the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265) which included provisions related to forced labour.
Awang also said that the joint committee between Malaysia and the US CBP to address forced labour practices had agreed to meet at a quarterly interval with the first meeting scheduled to take place virtually in August while another physical meeting is set to take place in Malaysia in December.
