The government today announced that it had launched an investigation into allegations that Filipino illegal immigrants were treated badly at detention centres while awaiting deportation.

Deputy Home Minister Zainal Abidin Zainal said the probe would examine allegations in the Philippine media that a child died while in detention in Sabah.

A detailed report would be completed within three days, he was quoted as saying by Bernama news agency.

Philippine officials have said several Filipino children died after being subjected to unhygienic conditions in holding areas. The Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman told local radio on Thursday that three babies have died of diseases or exposure to the elements during the mass deportations - two in Sandakan and one on the boat trip home.

Zainal denied on Wednesday that conditions in deportation centres were harsh.

"That is not true at all. We limit the centres to reasonable numbers and we do provide them with adequate food supply and healthy living conditions," Zainal said.

The Philippines says that since February about 64,000 Filipinos have left Malaysia's Sabah state in a major crackdown on illegal immigrants and that an estimated 4,000 Filipinos are still waiting to be deported.

A total of more than 300,000 illegal workers, mainly from Indonesia, went home under a fourth-month amnesty ahead of the introduction of new laws on August 1 under which they face jail and up to six strokes of the cane. AFP