Hitch in repatriation of Malaysians abroad

o Closure of borders, ban on flights make it difficult to bring home those stranded in foreign countries

PETALING JAYA: Strict standard operating procedures (SOP) in certain countries make it difficult for the government to repatriate stranded Malaysians there.

Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said among these were the closing of international borders and barring of foreign flights from entering their air space, making repatriation almost impossible.

“In some countries, they do not allow foreign aircraft to land on their soil. There are also no commercial flights flying from there to Malaysia. So the process is not as easy as it may seem,” he said in his Covid-19 media briefing in Putrajaya yesterday.

Ismail Sabri said the government was particularly concerned about Malaysians who are stuck in countries that were declared by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to be at very high risk of Covid-19 infections.

“WHO has declared some countries to be at a very critical level as far as the pandemic is concerned. This worries us, which is why we are giving extra attention to this matter.”

He said the Foreign Ministry has been tasked to discuss the matter with the related countries and come up with repatriation plans soon.

According to Ismail Sabri, the government has identified 10,484 Malaysians who are or have the potential to be stranded.

He explained that those with the potential to be stranded overseas include students who are about to complete their studies, or employees whose work contracts are expiring soon.

“These people no longer need to stay there, particularly as their house tenancies might also expire soon. We know in Oman, for example, a number of Malaysians are now out of work.

“There are also students in Egypt and Jordan who are completing their education. They too need to return home.”

Ismail Sabri said yesterday’s special committee meeting had proposed that the Covid-19 fund be expanded to include repatriation of Malaysians stranded abroad.

Currently, the fund is only used to assist Malaysians in the country who are financially affected by the pandemic.

He said at the moment, there is an estimated 457,000 Malaysians who are staying abroad, of whom only 387,702 are registered with the respective embassies.

He urged those who have yet to register to do so immediately for better monitoring.