US WELCOMES MALAYSIA'S EFFORTS IN COMBATING HUMAN TRAFFICKING

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 (Bernama) -- The United States (US) has welcomed
Malaysia's latest efforts in combating human trafficking despite its move to put
Malaysia back on its list of countries not doing enough to combat the menace.

An official of the US embassy here told Bernama in a telephone conversation
that the US welcomed the arrests of nine people recently, including five
Immigration Department officers, for alleged involvement in human trafficking.

He said the US understood that the Malaysian government was carrying out
investigations and legal proceedings on the cases and is looking forward to its
completion.

"The Malaysian government has indicated that it is interested in partnering
the US and others in the region to combat human trafficking.

"We are encouraged by pledges made by the Malaysian government on human
trafficking and we are looking forward to continued progress on this issue."

Last month, the US put Malaysia back on its list of countries suspected of
not doing enough to combat human trafficking, together with six African
countries -- Chad, Eritrea, Niger, Mauritania, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.

On Tuesday the media reported that nine people, including five Immigration
Department officers from the southern state of Johor, were arrested recently for
alleged involvement in an international human trafficking syndicate.

The suspects were believed to have received payments from a syndicate for
the "sale" of a group of people, comprising mostly Rohingya refugees, as forced
labour in various sectors like the fisheries industry.
-- BERNAMA