From Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Bangladeshis now imprisoned in Malaysian detention camps are passing their days in most horrible and miserable condition.

One such Bangladeshi Md Rahim, hailing from Chittagong, came here for higher studies explained horrible conditions of detainees while talking to banglanews correspondents at Kuala Lumpur.

Giving an example of their woes at detention camps, he said if any detainee wants to make a phone call, he is to pay MR 200 for one-minute duration.

Rahim told that after coming over here in student visa, he got admitted in TMC College in 2014 and deposited his passport to college authority for visa. He was given a slip as college admission proof.

He went to a relatives’ house at Cyber Jaya from where Immigration police arrested him in a raid at that night.

He was kept under police custody for a week. He tried to contact the agent Mizan who did not respond. Even the college authority did not take any initiative to release their students.

After then, he was sent to the detention camp. During his detention period, the Bangladesh embassy in Malaysia did not make any attempt to get released the Bangladesh nationals.

Rahim gave a picture of woe condition of the detention camps where detainees neither were supplied with any adequate food nor were given good behavior.

For phone call, the detainees have to pay MR 20 and MR 50 for one-minute call. The phone call was done using police officers’ phone who adjusted the cost from the money, which was sent by detainee’s relatives or friends.

The college authority finally contacted after four months.

They were produced before the court without any defense lawyer to move for them because they had no money to appoint any lawyer.

Rahim told that in contrast the embassies of Indonesia and the Philippines appointed lawyers for their detainees and got released producing their valid documents through their lawyers. Even the illegal migrants were released and were deported to their home country.

Rahim further informed that there were about two hundred Bangladeshis in the camp. Those who could arrange money they got release early but those, who could not manage money, had to stay in the camp.

During last four and half months, one embassy official visited our camp but he did not meet Bangladeshis, Rahim alleged. 

In this way, the Bangladeshis are languishing in the camp unfed or half-fed. One Syed Minhazur Rahman has been working for long for the release of detained people.

If proper measures are taken, Bangladeshis would get release from detention camps at an earliest time without further sufferings, Rahim added.

BDST: 1646 HRS, SEP 18, 2015

Edited by Shahjahan/RS