MELAKA: Rohingya refugees are the largest group of foreign motorists detained for traffic-related offences during a special enforcement operation conducted by the Melaka Road Transport Department (JPJ) in the state recently.
The department’s Melaka director, Siti Zarina Mohd Yusop, said 22 Rohingya refugees were detained during "Ops Pemandu Warga Asing" (Ops Pewa) on Wednesday (June 10). It was more than the number of Pakistanis (10), Bangladeshis (9), Indonesians (5) and Vietnamese (2) who were also detained during the operation.
She said most of those detained were riding motorcycles or driving vehicles without valid driving licences or insurance coverage.
"For today's (June 10) operation alone, Rohingya refugees recorded the highest number of offences.
"The majority were found using motorcycles and vehicles owned by locals for work and business purposes," she said on Wednesday.
Siti Zarina said Kampung Limbongan here was among the areas identified through intelligence gathering and monitoring as a hotspot for Rohingya refugees and had become one of the department's primary enforcement focus areas.
She said the Merlimau and Melaka Sentral bus terminal area had also been identified as key routes frequently used by foreign motorists.
"We know the routes they commonly use, and that is why enforcement activities have been intensified in those areas.
"As of Tuesday (June 9), Melaka JPJ had inspected 2,322 vehicles in various operations involving foreign motorists, with action taken against 774 vehicles.
"A total of 177 vehicles were seized while 951 notices were issued for various offences," she added.
Siti Zarina also noted that despite the latest operation recording the highest number of offences among Rohingya refugees, cumulative enforcement statistics between Jan 1 and June 9 showed Indonesians topping the list with 52 cases, followed by Pakistanis (42) and Bangladeshis (38).
