Beyond KLIA: Unpacking Malaysia's systemic migration challenges
The act of "counter-setting" which involves corruption at borders is a well-recognised enabler of both human trafficking and migrant smuggling. Thus, "counter setting" is not just negligence, it is an institutional gateway for illicit entry under the guise of administrative authority.
Under the UN Trafficking Protocol (Palermo Protocol) and Malaysia's Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 (ATIPSOM), human trafficking consists of three essential elements: Act (e.g., recruitment, transportation), Means (e.g., coercion, fraud, abuse of power), and Purpose (e.g., exploitation such as forced labour or sexual servitude).
As studies has established, most trafficking victims enter Malaysia legally which means that they are in possession of valid passport and are even given a 30-day visa free entry if they are from Southeast Asian countries.
By contrast, migrant smuggling involves consensual facilitation of unlawful entry in exchange for financial gain.
In addition, it is extremely difficult for individuals to board international flights to Malaysia without valid travel documents. This may not necessarily be the case when entering Malaysia through land.
For example, Malaysia's land borders especially in areas such as Rantau Panjang, Sungai Golok, and Wang Kelian are far more porous. In Wang Kelian, a one-kilometre "no man's land" separates Thai and Malaysian posts, making unsupervised crossings possible
Malaysia's fluctuating labour policies such as the temporary freeze (and subsequent lifting) on the intake of Bangladeshi workers for example, have created a market of desperation. One major concern is the licensing regime.
In Malaysia, work agents are not required to possess individual licences. Some agents operate without registration; others exploit legal platforms while engaging in parallel black-market operations.
Disturbingly, many such agents are foreign nationals already residing in Malaysia, which helps them gain the trust of vulnerable migrant communities.
Malaysia must move beyond reactive enforcement and address the systemic factors that enable counter setting and migration-related abuse.
A rights-based and reform-oriented strategy should include stricter employer vetting procedures and meaningful penalties for labour exploitation; crackdowns on unlicensed and unscrupulous agents, including those operating under legal facades; enhance institutional oversight across border enforcement agencies to prevent corruption; implement a victim-centred approach that treats irregular entrants as potential victims unless complicity is proven; and ratify the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all migrant workers and members of their families.
The KLIA "counter setting" scandal exposes systemic cracks in Malaysia's migration governance, labour recruitment processes, and institutional safeguards.
While prosecuting offenders is necessary, structural reforms must follow to protect migrants' rights and preserve the integrity of our borders.
Criminologist and Senior Lecturer
Faculty of Law, University Malaya
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