Kathmandu, September 22
Prime Minister Balendra Shah (Balen) has urged Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to stop the syndicate and middleman practices in Malaysia’s employment sector.
He drew attention to the many problems in employment in Malaysia, resulting in the suffering of Nepali workers, urging that the problem be resolved.
According to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, PM Shah spoke with his Malaysian counterpart Ibrahim by phone on Tuesday morning.
“We do not like the syndicate and middleman system, and it is not acceptable under any circumstances. It has hurt workers,” the Secretariat quoted PM Shah as telling his Malaysian counterpart. “So I request that your labour minister sit down for direct talks with our labour minister and take the necessary steps to remove this problem for good.”
PM Shah stressed the need to make foreign employment between Nepal and Malaysia dignified, transparent and free of exploitation.
He made clear to his Malaysian counterpart that he and his government do not favour the syndicate and middleman practices present in Malaysia’s employment sector.
Making clear that such impractical and unjust practices are unacceptable, he stressed the need for a joint initiative to resolve the problem permanently.
Malaysian PM Ibrahim also said he stands against such practices.
“I am also completely opposed to this wrong and exploitative system. I will immediately direct our labour minister to discuss this matter with his Nepali counterpart and work out a concrete solution,” the Malaysian prime minister said.
