Detention depot packed with illegal migrants

About 400 illegal migrants including Bangladesh nationals and Rohingya from Myanmar have been transported from Langkawi to Belantik Immigration Detention Depot, while 500 more are expected to be sent to the depot this evening.

More than a thousand were held in detention in Langkawi for attempting to enter the country illegally.

The detention depot can accommodate around one thousand people, meaning it will be almost fully packed when all these illegal migrants are sent here, reports the Sin Chew Daily.

A spokesman said the detention depot comprises two large buildings each for male and female detainees.

In addition to three meals a day, the detention depot will also provide afternoon tea and supper for the detainees.

The spokesman said in order to accommodate the large number of illegal migrants, the center's hall will also be used for the temporary accommodation of these migrants.

The first batch of migrants was sent here around 8:00pm Wednesday night in nine lorries under police escort.

"They will be deported once we get further instruction. I believe this will take about one or two weeks."

As the Belantik Immigration Detention Depot commander Abd Rahim Mahmood is still attending a meeting in Alor Setar, we have not been able to get permission to enter the detention depot.

These illegal migrants were first transported onboard Royal Malaysian Navy's KD Mahawangsa from Bukit Malut jetty in Langkawi before they were sent to the detention depot.