Human rights lawyer Fadiah Nadwa Fikri has lodged a police report calling for immediate investigation into the alleged extortion and mistreatment of workers involved in the building of the new palace.

The matter came to light when English-language daily Star reported on Sunday that about 1,000 Indonesian workers hired to build the RM800 million Istana Negara have yet to receive their wages from some sub-contractors.

Main contractor Maya Maju Sdn Bhd had claimed earlier that it was the responsibility of the sub-contractors to pay their workers.

hindraf probed by police 141008 latheefa koya In the police report, Fadiah, together with PKR information chief Latheefa Koya ( right ) and human rights lawyers N Surendran and Murnie Hidayah, highlighted that the workers have not been paid since January and that they have been victims of extortion by police personnel.

"The workers were supposed to be paid about RM1,500 per month," she said.

The lawyers also revealed that there had been periodic raids (at least once or twice a month) by the police, with about 100 workers being detained each time.

"The workers have claimed that the police ask for at least RM1,500 per person in bribes for their release," Fadiah said.

She said the workers were told they would be released after the money was paid by their representative.

Fadiah claimed that the authorities have been confiscating personal belongings such as canned food, cigarettes and shampoo, making it hard on the women and children.

new istana palace "Some babies are less than a week old. How will they survive if this is allowed to go on?"

Together with the police report, the lawyers submitted two written statements by workers who requested anonymity.

"The names of the workers have been blacked out to protect them from harassment," said Surendran.

Details will not be revealed unless there is a guarantee from the authorities to protect the workers.

Asked about Human Resource Minister S Subramaniam's dismissal of any such claims in Parliament, Latheefa said there is no need to wait for complaints from the workers, who are vulnerable and exploitable.

p balasubramaniam missing pi kumaresan pc 070708 surendran "The labour department and Human Resources Ministry should look into the matter immediately as they have enough power."

Surendran ( left ) was disappointed that the ministry has not investigated the claims, despite lawyers obtaining written and signed statements from the workers.

Asked about the exact of number of workers experiencing such difficulties, Surendran said: "We cannot confirm the matter now, as there are always people coming and going at the construction site."

He said that there were rumours that some had been relocated to a construction site in Malacca and that others had left.

The lawyers also requested that the outcome of the investigations be made public.

Closed-door meeting

In a related development, Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng told reporters in Parliament that he had been invited for a closed-door meeting with Maya Maju.

"I had earlier met and interviewed some of the workers (while on) a visit (to the site) with some reporters. We found that out of the 10 interviewed, only one has been paid," he said.

The workers are in constant fear of the authorities and Rela officers who conduct raid on illegal migrants, he added.

"They only eat one meal a day, as they are not paid and have to hide their belongings for fear of these being confiscated by the authorities."

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