Migrant rights group Tenaganita has condemned the Malaysian government’s decision to resume the recruitment of workers from Bangladesh.
The group warned that the move risks exacerbating a “deep humanitarian crisis” driven by systemic exploitation.
In a statement, Glorene A Das, Executive Director of Tenaganita, said the government should not proceed with new hiring until the plight of thousands of Bangladeshi workers already in Malaysia is resolved.
“Resuming recruitment without addressing ongoing injustices will only perpetuate the suffering of these workers. This is a grave disrespect for human dignity,” Glorene said.
The government had halted the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers in May 2024 following widespread reports of human trafficking and recruitment fraud.
The recent lifting of the suspension has sparked concern that authorities are prioritizing numbers over accountability and reform.
Tenaganita said that between January 2022 and September 2024, Malaysia officially received nearly 500,000 migrant workers, over 351,000 of whom came from Bangladesh.
Many of them, however, arrived to find the promised jobs nonexistent. Some reportedly paid up to 25,000 Malaysian ringgit (over €4,800) in recruitment fees, often incurring heavy debts.
“They were lured with false guarantees, they were not paid, and today they are considered to be illegal immigrants without any guilt. They live with the constant risk of being arrested. The government cannot simply shift the blame to the so-called ‘rogue’ recruitment agencies,” Glorene said.
“These workers could never have entered the country without the approval and active involvement of various government agencies. It is time for those in power to take responsibility,” Glorene added.
Tenaganita also revealed that at least 150 companies had obtained worker quotas despite lacking actual business operations or capacity to employ labor, describing it as evidence of a corrupt and profit-driven system that exploits worker vulnerability.
Despite the scale of the issue, Glorene said authorities are ignoring the crisis by resuming mass recruitment without implementing any structural reforms.
“What is needed is not more foreign workers, but a serious commitment to repairing a broken system,” she said, reiterating that these are not undocumented migrants, but legally recruited workers “abandoned by an opaque and unfair recruitment mechanism that denies them even the most basic rights.”
The late pontiff, Pope Francis, consistently upheld the inherent dignity of migrant workers, urging governments and societies to recognize and protect their fundamental rights.
He emphasized that the “essential dignity of the person” must be the foundation of all migration policies, regardless of a worker’s legal status.
Pope Francis called for fair wages, equal access to healthcare and social protection, and the inclusion of migrants in decision-making processes that affect their lives.
He strongly condemned discrimination rooted in nationalism, economic interests, or cultural prejudice, warning against narratives that portray migrants as burdens rather than contributors.
