KUCHING, Feb 9: One of the 47 Malaysians — 44 of them Sarawakians — being detained at Banteay Meanchey Prison in Cambodia was recently taken to a hospital for surgery, revealed Julau MP Larry Sng.
“I have just been informed by a family representative who is now in Cambodia that one of the Malaysians detained was taken to the hospital last week for stomach surgery,” he said in a statement today.
To have a better grasp of the whole situation, Sng is making an attempt to visit the detainees.
He said he had written to Foreign Minister Dato Saifuddin Abdullah to express his intention to visit the 47 Malaysians.
“In the letter, I also asked for the opinion of the minister on my intention to bring families of the victims and some media personnel with me to see for themselves what is the situation there is like.”
In view of the limited communication, Sng said he had been using his personal channel to get more detailed information on the matter.
“I ask that all Malaysians pray hard in unison that these Malaysian prisoners in Cambodia are safe. They are all our children. They are the children of Malaysia.”
The 47 Malaysians have being held at the Cambodian provincial jail, which is 446 km from the capital Phnom Penh, since Dec 16 last year without trial and without the knowledge of the Malaysian Embassy.
The matter was only made known to several of their parents about a month ago when news of their arrests was published in Cambodian news.
Sng claimed that these 47 young Malaysians were victims of human trafficking. They were promised high-paying jobs by scammers in exchange of about US$200.
Upon their arrival in Cambodia, they were housed in a private home. After several weeks, they felt restless when no jobs were forthcoming. Then the police came to arrest them for illegal online gaming. They denied it.
They were held for a week in a lock-up and then transferred to the provincial jail till now. They have not been brought to a court of law to be charged or to be remanded.
Sng said some of their families had gone to Cambodia to find out where they are. A check with the Malaysian Embassy did not reveal their arrests or whereabouts.
However, one of the parents managed to find out their whereabouts. Shortly, a news item was published about them in the Cambodian local press.
It seems that they could be held without charges by the police for up to three years. — DayakDaily
