Sri Lankan mission officials in Kuala Lumpur have still not been able to meet the families of the intercepted vessel which was believed to be smuggling a group of Sri Lankans to Australia, a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson told the Sunday Observer yesterday.Royal Malaysian Police Special Branch have communicated to the Sri Lankan Mission that 131 persons were arrested last Tuesday when they were being transported to a rusty tanker, on a small fishing boat.
He said since Malaysia declared a holiday after the election, the mission officials did not have access to the detained people. “We are hopeful that a meeting can be arranged on Monday,” he added.
The suspected Sri Lankans, are detained at Tanjung Gamoh, Sedili, in Johor Bahru. Out of the 131 persons, 127 have been arrested under the country’s Immigration Act. They are presently detained at Pekan Nenas Immigration Detention Centre in Johor Bahru. Four persons have been arrested under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act of 2007 and are also detained. It is said that 43 persons of the detained hold IDs issued by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). (MF)