Amnesty alarmed by deaths in detention centres
Amnesty International Malaysia(AI-M) has expressed alarm by the Home Minister’s statement in Parliament revealing that twenty-three detainees, including two children, had died in immigration detention centres from January to June 2020.
“Any death in detention should raise concerns and result in open and transparent investigations. Instead, we know 151 people died in detention between 2016 to September 2019, and yet there have not been meaningful, thorough and public investigations into these deaths.
Amnesty International Malaysia(AI-M) has expressed alarm by the Home Minister’s statement in Parliament revealing that twenty-three detainees, including two children, had died in immigration detention centres from January to June 2020.
“Any death in detention should raise concerns and result in open and transparent investigations. Instead, we know 151 people died in detention between 2016 to September 2019, and yet there have not been meaningful, thorough and public investigations into these deaths.
“What we’ve seen, however, is investigations into whistle-blowers, journalists and those who report on the human rights violations against migrants and in detention centres,” said AI-M executive director Katrina Maliamauv.
AI-M said it is troubled by the lack of information on the causes of deaths in these cases, as well as inconsistencies in statistics on deaths in immigration detention centres.
The figures released in Parliament show an increase in the average number of deaths per month, from an average of 3.3 deaths every month between 2016 to September 2019, to an average of 3.8 deaths per month this year.
“Without clear and thorough investigations, how will the Malaysian government be accountable to the public, and ensure serious measures to prevent future deaths are put in place?
"It’s also troubling that the death of 67-year-old Zeawdeen Kadar Masdar, an Indian national, was seemingly not included in this reply to Parliament,” Maliamauv claimed.
The Home Ministry had this week in a written reply to Batu Kawan MP Kasthuri Patto's parliamentary question, revealed that 18 adult men, three women and two children died in immigration detention centres in Malaysia.
Five of the deaths were in Semenyih immigration depot, three deaths each in Langkap, Lenggeng and Pekan Nenas, two in Juru, KLIA and Bukit Jalil and one death each in Ajil and Machap Umboo.
The 23 detainees who died were from Indonesia (10), Bangladesh (2), Cambodia (2), Kenya (2), Myanmar (1), Nepal (1), Pakistan (1), Vietnam (1) and Canada (1).
“Following the death of twenty-three individuals since the start of the year, the Ministry of Home Affairs must be accountable to their families and the Malaysian public.”
Amnesty International and other human rights organisations have documented the appalling conditions of immigration detention centres in Malaysia for many years.
Research conducted, including that of the National Commission of Human Rights (Suhakam) in 2018 found these detention centres to be cramped, unsanitary, poorly maintained, and lacking in basic facilities such as clean water and food, said AI-M.
“These deaths are distressing, but in the absence of meaningful investigation by the government, they are sadly not shocking. Instead of taking actions to address reports of appalling conditions in immigration detention, including by the country’s human rights commission, we see instead an escalation in arrest and detention of migrants and refugees,” said Maliamauv
She said that in recent months, immigration officials and police conducted raids against migrants that have violated the rights of migrants, and undermined Covid-19 preventative measures.
In May, the government conducted at least three large scale raids against undocumented migrants, rounding up hundreds of individuals including young children in downtown Kuala Lumpur, Selayang and PJ Old Town.
While on June 4, Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah announced that 270 new cases of Covid-19 were detected at the Bukit Jalil Immigration Detention Depot, making it the largest daily spike since the beginning of the pandemic.
"Hundreds of detainees were subsequently cramped into detention centres that are often overcrowded, making social distancing impossible to observe.
"Even though the dangers of such practices were forewarned of by many civil society organisations, sharp increases of infections of Covid-19 in these centres still took place.
“Detention of individuals solely for immigration-related purposes amidst a global pandemic is unjustifiable," she said.
AI-M urged the government to open investigations into all deaths that have taken place within immigration detention centres and to make the findings public.
"Malaysia should also follow other countries such as the UK and release detainees immediately. Human rights should always be at the centre of our actions and policies, especially during this time of crisis”, added Maliamauv.
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