THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said there is a possibility that some Malaysians among those being 'detained' by job scam syndicates abroad, such as in Myanmar and Thailand, may actually be holding high positions.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, said because some may be holding positions such as managers in syndicates, they may have no intention of returning to their homeland.
“There is a possibility that among them, there are those who do not intend to return to Malaysia because they hold high positions in the syndicates.
"There is also a possibility that the individual reported missing by their relatives previously has returned to Malaysia without informing the Ministry or police," he said in a written reply in Parliament.
He said this in response to a question from Oscar Ling Chai Yew (PH-Sibu) regarding the number of Malaysians trapped in Myanmar and Thailand due to job scam syndicates, including state-by-state statistics and whether the government will issue an official travel warning to the affected countries.
Mohamad said that as of January 21, the government had rescued and repatriated 114 Malaysians involved in the 'job scam' syndicate from Myanmar and 157 Malaysians from Thailand.
He said that the government is proactively tracking the whereabouts of 140 Malaysians in Myanmar and another 14 in Thailand with the cooperation of local authorities.
"For your information, Malaysians from Johor recorded the highest number involved in the 'job scam' issue, representing 19 percent, followed by Selangor (13 percent), Sarawak (12 percent), the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur (12 percent), Perak (11 percent), Penang (nine percent), Sabah (six percent), Negeri Sembilan (five percent), Kedah and Pahang each three percent, Melaka (two percent), Kelantan and Terengganu each one percent, and Perlis 0.2 percent," he said.
He added that most of the scam syndicates operate in northern Myanmar, bordering Thailand and the People's Republic of China, an area that is not controlled by the Myanmar government but rather dominated by various armed ethnic groups.
Meanwhile, Thailand is said to be just a transit country for the syndicates, aiming to bring in foreign workers to Myanmar.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs always works closely with other ministries and agencies such as police in addressing this 'job scam' issue, where there are still Malaysians who are deceived or willing to get involved voluntarily for the lucrative salaries offered to them," he said.
Regarding the official travel warning, Mohamad said Malaysia has not issued it as awareness campaigns are still being actively conducted among the community.
The Malaysian government will discuss this issue through all existing platforms, including leveraging the ASEAN-Malaysia Chairmanship throughout 2025 to find an appropriate solution.
"To demonstrate ASEAN's commitment to addressing the issue of job offer scam syndicates at the ASEAN level, the issue of human trafficking and online scams was discussed during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat held on January 18-19 in Langkawi," he said. – February 21, 2025
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