1,500 NTB workers deported from Malaysia

MATARAM: At least 1,500 domestic workers from West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) have been deported from Malaysia this year, with dozens of them reportedly suffering depression and mild mental illness.

Bambang MR, an official at the municipal workforce and transmigration agency, said the ill-fated workers had not equipped themselves with immigration documents and had already served punishment before being deported. "They have been categorized as illegal workers because their labor documents were not complete," he said.

Bambang said the majority of the workers were those who had left for Malaysia through legal means but had run away to switch employers without informing local authorities.

NTB sends 50,000 workers to Malaysia a year, which brings in an annual revenue of around Rp 500 billion, or half the provincial budget. - JP