5 December 2012 – The Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur said today that through its Office of the Labor Attache, the Embassy has cancelled the accreditation of the placement agency which deployed the six Filipinas who were rescued by Malaysian authorities last December 1 from a building in Bandar Baru Klang in Selangor due to reports of abuse and human trafficking.

"To better protect our nationals, the Philippine Embassy has cancelled the license of the agency involved in the maltreatment of 105 foreign workers, including the six Filipinas. What the agency has done is a violation of human rights and is an egregious infraction of the terms of its accreditation," Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya said.

The Filipinas were part of 105 workers rescued by Malaysian immigration police in a building in Bandar Baru Klang, where they were locked up with 95 Indonesians and four Cambodians. The women have alleged been physically abused and only fed twice a day.

After the rescue, Malaysian authorities placed the women in a shelter under interim protection order as authorities secure their statements and investigate the case.

Embassy representatives visited them today at the women's shelter.

Twelve individuals connected with the Agensi Pekerjaan Sentosa Sdn Bhd have been arrested. These individuals, nine of whom are foreign women—five Indonesians, three Cambodians and a Filipina—are in police custody.

In June 2009, the Indonesian Government suspended the sending of HSWs to Malaysia following numerous reports of abuses.

In October 2011, Cambodia also banned the deployment of HSWs to Malaysia.

In September this year, upon approval by the Department of Labor and Employment, the Embassy issued a moratorium on the accreditation of new agencies wishing to deploy HSWs from the Philippines. END