Malaysia’s government has announced plans for the collection of fingerprint data from roughly 2 million illegal aliens in the country in an effort to curb the use of fraudulent identity documents and to better manage the growing foreign worker population, according to a Herald Sun article.
The program is expected to last roughly a month and begin in mid-July, but officials have already been trying to encourage illegal workers to enroll by ensuring them that no actions other than granting them amnesty will be taken against them for enrolling in the database.
The country has been attracting citizens from nearby nations that have fallen on hard times as either a new opportunity for work or as a stop to gain entry into other countries such as Australia. The country is granting amnesty because of the large number of illegal workers in addition to the country’s inability to fill large numbers of low-paying jobs and a fear of those seeking amnesty ending up in the hands of human traffickers or employers interested in exploiting illegal status.
Other plans for the program is for the government to see how unemployed foreigners could be absorbed into the workforce with the option to return home with no punishment should they be unable to find work. Following the program, the government plans a subsequent crackdown on the remaining unregistered illegal workers that could see them jailed and caned.
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