Dhaka will discuss the human trafficking issue with Kuala Lumpur to stop illegal migration to Malaysia.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali is now in Malaysia for a joint commission meeting with his Malaysian counterpart Anifah Aman where migration, trade and investment issues will also be discussed.
“The topic human trafficking will be prominently discussed in the joint commission meeting today,” Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
Bangladeshis and Myanmar citizens use sea routes to get into Malaysia illegally and often are taken hostage at the Malaysian-Thailand border to extract money from the victims. Recently, Thai authorities discovered a number of mass graves in a Thai jungle where it is believed a number of Bangladeshis were buried.
“This is a serious issue and a coordinated effort is needed to stop the human trafficking,” the foreign secretary said.
The government has taken a number of steps to make people aware so they do not undertake this risky journey, he said.
Thailand is going to organise a regional conference on human trafficking on May 29 where representatives from Bangladesh, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and United States are invited.
“A high-level delegation from Bangladesh will participate in the conference to foster regional cooperation to stop the trafficking,” the foreign secretary said.
Joint commission meeting
In the joint commission meeting, Dhaka will raise issues related to recruitment of Bangladeshis for Malaysian institutions.
“We signed a memorandum of understanding with Malaysia last year for the recruitment of 12,000 agriculture workers in Malaysian plantations, but so far no one has been recruited,” said a foreign ministry official who wished to remain anonymous. The minister will request his Malaysian counterpart to expedite the process and also ask him to open other sectors for Bangladeshi citizens.
The two-way trade is heavily tilted towards Malaysia, and Bangladesh will ask for trade preferences for pharmaceuticals, readymade garments and leather products, the official said.
The two-way trade was about $2 billion and, of that, Bangladeshi exports to Malaysia were only $140 million in the last fiscal year. Bangladesh imports large amounts of edible oil from Malaysia.