KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has stepped up the preparedness of its maritime assets and radar monitoring as well as its air assets in the international waters following reports of the landing of a boat carrying 81 Rohingya refugees in Acheh, Indonesia yesterday.
The National Task Force (NTF) in a statement today said it would enhance surveillance to curb the smuggling of illegal immigrants into the country through rat routes along the west coast of the Malaysian peninsula.
âNTF will not compromise with syndicates and traitors involved in the smuggling of Rohingya refugees and illegal immigrants into the country. Strict action will be taken under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007.
âNTF together with 19 security and enforcement agencies will continue to carry out integrated operations to step up security at the countryâs border in curbing the entry of illegal immigrants as well as controlling the spread of Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia,â it said.
According to the statement, the NTF had received two reports of a Rohingya boat and âmother boatâ departing from Coxâs Bazar camp, Bangladesh in February and April.
âNTF believes that the landing in East Acheh is one of the âdiversionâ tactics used by the syndicate to obscure their movement,â it said. â Bernama
