KLANG: The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) believes cases of foreign worker exploitation on fishing boats have gone undetected.
MMEA acting deputy director general (operations) Rear Admiral Mohd Zawawi Abdullah said many of these cases involved foreigners from Bangladesh and Myanmar.
"Many of them do not have any valid papers and are afraid of their employers so they just don't tell us that they are being exploited.
"In many cases, the employers threaten them and they just tell us that they were being paid although they were actually being forced to work without pay," he told reporters after closing the Op Redback joint operation with the Australian Border Force (ABF).
Australian High Commission, ABF Counsellor Superintendent Brooke Leung and MMEA Selangor Director Maritime Captain Abdul Muhaimin Muhammad Salleh also attended the event.
He said when they inspected fishing boats and find undocumented migrants they immediately open investigations under the Anti Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants Act (Atipsom).
"This allows us to remand the suspects for a longer period while we conduct thorough investigations.
"The investigation process was complex. And it becomes further complicated when these foreigners do not tell the truth out of fear," he said.
He said between 2021 and November this year they have recorded 29 Atipsom cases. "We recorded five cases in 2021, 13 in 2022, four in 2023 and seven this year.
Mohd Zawawi said holding joint operations such as Op Redback with Australian Border Forces was crucial in their efforts to curb such activities.