Strictly enforce immigration law on all foreigners – Henrynus
KOTA KINABALU: The Home Affairs Ministry (KDN) should strictly enforce immigration law that requires all foreigners who enter, live and work in this country to hold valid passports, visas or work pass.
The call came from Parti Kerjasama Anak Negeri (Anak Negeri) president Datuk Henrynus Amin yesterday, saying that no foreigner regardless of their entry status should be exempted from this fundamental legal requirements.
Henrynus claimed that Sabahans were shocked by the decision of the Home Ministty to recognize, revive and legalize all doubtful IMM13, Kad Burung Burung and Kad Bancian issued to illegal immigrants 30 to 40 years ago, and now replacing these doubtful and outdated documents with a three-year temporary but renewable pass in the form of a high security biometric travel document or identity cards which allow illegal immigrants to work and remain in the state indefinitely without holding any passport issued by their countries of origin.
One should be reminded under existing laws all holders of fake IMM13 or Kad Burung Burung or Kad Bancian issued in Sabah 30 to 40 years ago are essentially illegal immigrants, he pointed out.
“As far as we know, IMM13 is a form of visa stamped on the passport of refugees recognized by both the Malaysian and Philippines authorities. Valid IMM13 documents were issued in the 1970s when about 80,000 refugees arrived in Sabah. Anything issued after the 1970s, especially issued by illegal syndicates are fake,” Henrynus stressed.
According to him, during Berjaya rule in late 1970s and early 1980s or 40 years ago, Filipino migrants were no longer given IMM13 documents but registered in resettlement schemes where they were issued with a registration paper popularly known as Kad Burung Burung.
The resettlement registration card or Kad Burung Burung was never recognized as a valid travel document and therefore its holder was always deemed to be an illegal immigrant, he said.
Likewise, a census card (Kad Bancian) issued 30 years ago as mere records of illegal immigrants regularized during special operation or during population census was never recognized as a valid travel document, he pointed out.
Anak Negeri’s stand, Henrynus said, is that the issuance of high security biometric temporary pass or identity cards to holders of IMM13 issued after the 1970s or Kad Burung Burung or Kad Bancian without valid passport is obviously unlawful, as it contravenes the Immigration Act.
This begs the question, whether or not there exists a secret conspiracy in high places to circumvent the law by recognizing, reviving and legalizing all fake IMM13, Kad Burung Burung and Kad Bancian issued 30 to 40 years ago as a prelude to the future issuance of citizenship documents to illegal immigrants, opined Henrynus.
In principle, Anak Negeri, he said, agreed on the necessity of documenting all illegal immigrants in Sabah especially those who had been staying for 30 to 40 years.
“But if any temporary pass were to be issued to illegal immigrants, its validity should be limited to 12 months, giving them enough time to obtain or renew their passports, visa or work pass etc in order to legally work and remain in this country.”
“The benchmark for qualification for foreigners to enter, work and remain in this country should always be in possession of a valid passport as a travel document issued by their countries of origin and a work pass issued by the host country,” said Henrynus.
According to him, the issuance of a three-year temporary but renewable pass in the form of a high security biometric identity cards should never replace the need for a valid passport and a work pass.
“To simply ignore the relevant provisions of the immigration rules on illegal immigrants is an affront to the sanctity of the law and the Federal Constitution. No doubt Sabahans fear the prospect of over a million illegal immigrants in Sabah becoming legal residents overnight to fundamentally change the political landscape of the state,” Henrynus said.
He stressed that Federal authorities should not underestimate the long-term threats to the sovereignty, security, peace and stability of the state posed by illegal immigrants and the legitimate fear of the people of Sabah.
It is the Federal obligation as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and the Federal Constitution to guarantee the sovereignty, security, peace and stability of the State of Sabah as one of the two Malaysian Borneon states, he said.
“We wish to remind the Federal Government that the people of Sabah have embraced the idea of Malaysia in 1963 not because of economic promises, but rather security concerns due to threats from neighbouring countries.
“Failure of the Federal Government to secure national borders, which allowed massive foreign demographic invasion of Sabah and its failure to defend the security and sovereign rights of the people of Sabah as Malaysians are serious breach of the relevant provisions on federal security obligations to the people of Sabah agreed upon under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 during the formation of Malaysia,” said Henrynus.