The fear of getting whipped had led 110 overstaying foreigners in the country to surrender to authorities rather than facing the cane.

The deportation of foreign workers for offences under various government departments or enforcement agencies also saw a significant increase until the Q3 of 2004, with 1,987 of them being deported back to their countries of origin. Last year, the number stood at a mere 485.

Again, due to the immigration amnesty, a record 895 people were deported. June being the last month of the amnesty, 370 were deported in that month alone. Last year, April, May and June only recorded 158 deportations.

The amount of compound fines between April and June 2004 stood at $191,600 compared to last year's figure of $45,000.

Steps have been taken to ensure that foreigners, who enter and stay in the country, abide by the rules and regulations set forth under the Immigration and Passport Acts.

Advertisement

The Immigration Act Order (Amendment, bil. 2) 2004 is a follow up to the Immigration Act Order (Amendment) 2004, which was enforced February 12, 2004 in relation to the whipping of offenders under certain chapters of the Act.

According to statistics released by the Immigration Enforcement Section, until September this year, 226 people have been charged under the Immigration and Passport Acts.

During the same period last year, 131 people were charged.

Eighty-one people have so far been charged under Chapter 15(1) of the Immigration Act for overstaying in the country. Forty-three cases involving illegal immigrants under the Immigration Act 6 (1) (c) were heard in court up to September this year.

Fines collected from offenders also saw a significant rise this year. Compound fines totaling B$401,500 were collected for various immigration offences between January and September from 1,036 offenders.

For the whole of last year, fines collected stood at $285,600, whereas in 2002 the amount was $340,000. Only 474 were fined until the third quarter of 2003.

"Ops Banteras" in 2003 gave way to "Ops Buru" this year as Immigration personnel continued to hunt overstayers and immigration offenders.

To date, "Ops Buru" has completed 58 raids, that is approximately 1.6 raids per week until the end of September, which is more than what the department conducted last year.

It is interesting to note that the number of immigration offenders caught after the amnesty has shown a significant drop.

Only 36 offenders were caught between the months of July and September and about B$89,000 of compound fines collected. Fifty-eight offenders were caught during the same period in 2003 and B$97,700 in compound fines collected. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin