It crosses my mind whether the extreme acts of some immigrants - such as the raping and murdering minors - are the result of national policies that neglect to look into the needs of foreign workers employed here.

I wonder if repression of sexual needs has led to such heinous acts?

Sex is a common need among all in the animal kingdom. Repression of it can lead to violent behaviour patterns. It is common knowledge that our Indonesian workers are a deprived lot. Right from proper housing (many live in containers without proper sanitation) to as much as their basic right to public holidays.

Have we ever heard of our Indonesian maids having public holidays on Sundays? They work seven days a week, round the clock in our homes. Deprived of entertainment, deprived of loved ones, deprived of sex and deprived of space and time for themselves save for the few hours of sleep at night.

Our Indonesian males are also under that tight social conditioning themselves. If we see them acting like an animal, can we just totally blame them and support capital punishment for them?

Rather than going hard on them, it is time to review our actions as compassionate Malaysians. We send Malaysians abroad to help people in need i.e. earthquake victims. Yet, the very people next to us are neglected.

It is time for us to look hard at our policies. It is time for Malaysians to practice justice. We cannot use human beings as tools to improve our nation's productivity without looking at them as human first. This is akin to slavery.

If we neglect to see them as humans and treat them the way animals are treated, then they will be animal-like in their behaviour. Let's prevent that kind of beastly thinking.