KUALA LUMPUR: The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) has welcomed the government’s decision to place children at immigration depots under the care of non-governmental organisations specialising in child welfare.
In a statement yesterday, its chairman Prof Datuk Rahmat Mohamad said the decision was in line with Suhakam’s recommendation to the government to implement Alternatives to Detention (ATD) for the children concerned.
“Suhakam hopes the enforcement authorities will ensure that children are not placed at the immigration depots anymore.
“As a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Malaysia is obliged to ensure that the detention of a child shall be used as a measure of last resort, in particular when they were detained together with their parents or guardians due to immigration offences,” he said, Bernama reported.
He said the commission would continue to monitor the implementation of ATD and advocate for the rights and well-being of all children in the country.
