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MIRI – Police will tighten Sarawak-Kalimantan border security to prevent the influx of illegal migrants into the state for work and smuggling activities.
Bukit Aman director of internal security and public order Datuk Seri Hazani Ghazali told reporters that the General Operations Force (GOF) will set up a new base in the Sri Aman district, next to the Kalimantan border located roughly 200km north of Kuching.
A single battalion will be stationed at the base to patrol the roughly 1,000 km-long border, stretching from the mountains of Ba’kelalan in the north to Sematan in the south.
“We are setting up three new GOF bases in east Malaysia. One will be in Sri Aman and the other two in Sabah. The new one being set up in Sri Aman has the specific purpose of border security and control of movement of people and goods.
“The security at the Sarawak border with Kalimantan will be enhanced with better control. The Sri Aman side will focus on the border at that frontier.
“The existing GOF base in Sibu district will focus on the key points along Sibu, Kapit, and Belaga, all the way to Ba’kelalan,” said Hazani.
There are dozens of smuggling routes along these stretches where migrant workers from Kalimantan enter Sarawak to find jobs. There are also numerous syndicates smuggling goods and even weapons into the country.
On April 12, the Royal Malaysian Army had arrested eight illegal Indonesian migrants found inside Sarawakian territory along the Sarawak-Kalimantan border.
The culprits were armed with air rifles and machetes, and were believed to be looking for work.
“The eight Indonesians were caught inside Sarawak, about 50m away from the Kalimantan boundary. They were found inside an oil palm plantation. They were seven males and one female, all of them aged 17 to 43.
“Five of them were inside a multi-purpose vehicle together with a driver, while two were on motorcycles. All are Indonesians without entry permits and travel documents. Two air rifles and a few machetes were found in their possession,” the military said in a statement. – The Vibes, April 19, 2022
