KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has imposed a fresh ban on migrant workers from Bangladesh after more than 2,000 of them were abandoned at its main international airport, a report said Thursday.
The cash-strapped workers had to be housed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport's car park without proper food and water after being abandoned by local employers.
"We will not allow any more recruitment of Bangladeshi workers," Radzi Sheikh Ahmad, home affairs minister, was quoted as saying by New Straits Times.
He added that the freeze took effect immediately.
"There have been lots of problems and headaches created by agents and employers of Bangladeshi workers," he said.
This is the third time since 1996 that Malaysia has banned the intake of Bangladeshi workers.
But Talat Mahmud Khan, counsellor for labour at the Bangladesh High Commission in Malaysia , said Dhaka would appeal against the ban.
"We are going to ask the minister to reconsider. We are requesting ( Malaysia ) to continue the process of genuine applications," he told AFP.
Talat said many of the workers stuck at the airport had already been collected by employers while others had been deported.
Almost 180,000 Bangladeshis are working in Malaysia , he said. They are mainly engaged in the agriculture and service industries.
Malaysia relies heavily on foreign workers, particularly in the construction and farming sectors. - AFP/ac
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