GEORGE TOWN – Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan has agreed to engage in a debate with Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P. Ramasamy on the issue of forced labour in the country.
Saravanan, who is MIC deputy president, said that many advised him against accepting the challenge put forth by Ramasamy, claiming that the latter has a habit of twisting matters for cheap publicity.
He said Ramasamy had initially criticised his move to request more information from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and US authorities on allegations raised in relation to Malaysia, and had accused him of taking the easy way out in dealing with the parties.
Saravanan said Ramasamy, who is DAP’s Prai assemblyman, had called for a debate when he did not answer him.
“I accepted his challenge for a debate on the issue at hand and now he wants to not only speak about the accusation that I’m taking an easy way out but matters on a broader spectrum,” Saravanan said in a Facebook post today.
He said he wanted to “educate” Ramasamy on the steps being taken to eradicate forced labour, and further explain about his request to ILO and US authorities, claiming that Ramasamy is “ill-informed”.
“Instead of sticking to the issue that he had himself raised, he now wants to debate on things on a broader context,” Saravanan claimed. “I don’t owe an obligation to him, neither does he have any locus standi to discuss matters of labour at larger spectrum with me.”
Saravanan said he is available at 2pm on May 22.
Meanwhile, Ramasamy said the debate should be an open one on forced labour without any preconditions.
He said that even if their disagreement was on the subject of asking the ILO and the US embassy to investigate and inform the Malaysian government on instances of forced labour in the country, there are broader matters that need to be considered as well.
“The phenomenon of forced labour is a broad one; there is a need to understand what is meant by the term before adopting the superficial definition by the ILO,” he said in his own Facebook post this morning.
“The ILO definition does not outline the sources of forced labour and the conditions of its manifestations. Saravanan might be well meaning in his pursuit of the campaign to eradicate the scourge of forced labour.
“But unfortunately, given his limited understanding of the phenomenon of forced labour with its varied manifestations, he thinks that it could be eradicated with the right mix of policy and enforcement.”
He accused Saravanan of laying conditions that might be used to wiggle out of the “entrapment” of the debate.
“I am not sure this is a particular feature of the drama of MIC politics, but Saravanan is certainly engaging in it at least tentatively. Let us have an open debate on forced labour without any preconditions laid,” he said. – The Vibes, April 24, 2022
