Immigration union condemns assault on KLIA officer by Chinese national, calls it attack on Malaysian sovereignty
KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 15): The Immigration Services Union of Peninsular Malaysia (KPISM) has condemned the assault and verbal abuse of a female Immigration Department officer on duty at the KLIA Terminal 1 Immigration Inspection Counter on Wednesday.
The union said such acts are tantamount to challenging the sovereignty of Malaysian law, and tourists must respect the laws of the countries they visit.
'Immigration officers are the frontline defenders of the nation's sovereignty,' its president Ajeet Singh said in a statement here.
'Assaulting them while on duty is not only an uncivilised act, but also tarnishes the nation's image and jeopardises security at international entry points.'
KPISM said the incident occurred at around 7.40am when a foreign passenger verbally abused, pulled the officer's headscarf, and pushed her head, causing minor injuries.
'KPISM stresses that any act of provocation or injury against public servants is subject to legal action, regardless of whether the perpetrator is a Malaysian citizen or a foreign national,' he said.
It also urged the ministry to review a proposal to install closed-circuit television (CCTV) at every counter for more comprehensive monitoring of immigration processes.
KPISM, which said the officer is a union member, called on the Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) management to take proactive measures to ensure the safety of both immigration officers and travellers.
It demanded the investigation be expedited and prosecution carried out without compromise against the perpetrator.
It said the union will provide welfare and legal assistance to the officer until the justice process is completed.
Yesterday, the AKPS said a Chinese national was arrested after allegedly acting aggressively and injuring an Immigration counter officer during a departure inspection at the KLIA Terminal 1.
In the 7.40 pm incident, the woman, who was with a man and two children, approached the counter for immigration departure inspection when the officer on duty found that they had no records of entry into Malaysia, and referred the matter to the supervisor for further checks. — Malay Mail Immigration Services Union of Peninsular Malaysia KLIA Terminal 1 lead
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
29 minutes ago
- The Star
Singapore evaluating rapid urine test kits to enable faster detection of etomidate, found in Kpods
Vaping devices were seized during a raid targeting suspected vape distribution at a residence in Yishun on June 23. -- ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): Rapid urine test kits could soon be used by the authorities to detect etomidate, an illicit substance increasingly found in vapes here. This marks another step in a recent clampdown against such vapes, known as Kpods, which have grown in appeal partly because some sellers claim the drug cannot be detected in urine. A Health Sciences Authority (HSA) spokeswoman said on Aug 7 that such claims are false. She added HSA was evaluating rapid urine test kits that could enable faster detection of etomidate use. Ways to test for etomidate in hair and using saliva are also in the works. Currently, vape pods, including those suspected to contain illicit substances such as etomidate, are tested at HSA's laboratories. They also conduct confirmation tests for etomidate in both blood and urine samples from patients admitted to hospitals. The spokeswoman added: 'Our laboratory findings confirm that even trace amounts can be detected in the urine of those who are vaping etomidate.' Minister for Health Ong Ye Kung said on July 20 the authorities were working to list etomidate as an illegal drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act. This came after a third of more than 100 vapes seized during enforcement operations and tested at random contained the substance. The legal update paves the way for abusers and traffickers of Kpods to face stricter punishment, such as mandatory rehabilitation and jail time for repeat offenders. Growing demand Law enforcement agencies in other countries are also finding ways to test for the illicit substance as they grapple with a growing trend of etomidate abuse. The substance, once called 'space oil' in Hong Kong, has now been banned and renamed, and police there have been carrying rapid testing devices since January. The Hong Kong Free Press reported that the device can be inserted into a vape and detects the drug within 15 seconds with a 99 per cent accuracy rate. The substance emerged in the city in late 2023 and is now a scourge, with 327 etomidate abusers recorded in the first half of 2025, exceeding the 300 for the whole of 2024. Two manufacturers of etomidate rapid test kits told ST there is a growing global demand for their products. Chinese firm Hangzhou Clongene Biotech began developing urine and saliva rapid test kits two years ago in response to higher demand in China and abroad. A sales manager, who wanted to be known only as Ms Blanche, said it mainly supplies these kits to the government, hospitals and police. She told ST on Aug 12: 'We received inquiries from some biopharmaceutical companies from Singapore in the past two weeks, and we are preparing samples for them to test now.' Mr Kutong, a technical support and market manager for Ecalbio, a Chinese company which started manufacturing such kits in 2018, said it sold 400,000 test kits in 2024, up from 300,000 in 2023 and 100,000 in 2022. He added that customers have come from the US, Canada and Russia, but not Singapore. Results in minutes The etomidate kits produced by these two companies resemble Covid-19 test kits. Urine and saliva samples can be tested on them, and results are displayed within five to 10 minutes. If etomidate is present, only the control line will become visible. A negative result is indicated by both the control and test lines becoming visible. In June, a published paper in scientific journal Dalton Transactions presented a new chromium(III) complex-based sensor which could test for etomidate. The sensor works by displaying a colour change if etomidate is present within vape liquids, and can provide accurate results within a minute, according to the research paper. The team of researchers from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Hong Kong Baptist University said vaping etomidate is a red-hot social issue that has led to health concerns and deaths. The researchers wrote: 'A fast, sensitive and cost-effective detection tool for etomidate is urgently needed to support law enforcement.' - The Straits Times/ANN
Borneo Post
29 minutes ago
- Borneo Post
Rallies continue in Sabah to demand justice for Zara
The crowd at Lintasan Deasoka demanding justice for Zara. KOTA KINABALU (Aug 16): Rallies across Sabah continued to be held in remembrance of the late Zara Qairina Mahathir. On Saturday evening, one such rally took place at Lintasan Deasoka here, with around 500 people in attendance despite continuous rain. Participants stood under umbrellas as they chanted support for Zara and her family, while others held placards demanding that schools be made safe spaces for all. Police guarded the perimeter to safeguard against any untoward incidents. Jaya speaking at the gathering. According to organiser Jaya Kumar, 47, from the Indian Civil Servant Retirees Organisation, the gathering was to demand justice for Zara and highlight the rising number of bullying incidents. Jaya said if it wasn't for the rakyat's voices, the case might have already been closed, expressing dismay over a recent report that an investigating officer in the case failed to follow Standard Operating Procedures. 'This issue does not involve race or religion, it involves the loss of a child's life. I have children. How can I trust to send them to school with the situation now? Strict action must be taken by the authorities, parents and schools over this bullying issue. I hope that not just in Sabah, but the whole Malaysia, we do not see a second Zara,' he said. Rajandran addressing the rally. Meanwhile, Dato Seri Rajandran, 66, said to be from the Kedah Royal Family Association, suggested that schools place a complaint box for reporting bullying incidents. He explained that such boxes would give both students and staff a safe channel to report problems or daily incidents without fear of reprisal. 'With these boxes, we can receive daily updates on what is happening in schools and detect incidents early. I came here not to complain to any party, but to fight for justice as Malaysians. A Malaysian's blood was spilled — let us try to prevent another,' he said.
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Military airstrike on gem mining town kills at least 21 in Myanmar
BANGKOK (AP) - An airstrike by Myanmar's military on the town of Mogok, the centre of the South-East Asian country's lucrative gem-mining industry, has killed at least 21 people including a pregnant woman, an armed opposition group, local residents and Myanmar's online media said Saturday. The incident was the latest in a series of frequent and deadly military airstrikes, often causing civilian casualties, that have intensified in a bid to reclaim territory from resistance groups amid the ongoing civil war that erupted after the army seized power in February 2021. The attack occurred Thursday at 8:30 p.m. in Shwegu ward in Mogok township, about 115 kilometers (70 miles) northeast of Mandalay, the country's second-largest city, said Lway Yay Oo, a spokesperson for the the Ta'ang National Liberation Army. The TNLA is one of the powerful ethnic militias fighting against the army near the Chinese border. "About 21 civilians were killed. Seven others were injured. Homes and Buddhist monastery buildings were also damaged,' Lway Yay Oo said. Mogok, the ruby-mining center in the upper Mandalay region, was seized in July 2024 by the TNLA, a member of an alliance of ethnic militias that seized a large swath of territory in northeastern Myanmar in an offensive that began in late 2023. The group's statement, released Friday night on its Telegram social media channel, said 16 women were among the victims killed in the airstrike that appeared to target a Buddhist monastery in Mogok's Shwegu ward. It said 15 houses were also damaged when a jet fighter dropped a bomb. Two Mogok residents told The Associated Press on Saturday that the death toll had risen to nearly 30, though the exact casualties could not be independently confirmed. The residents, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were afraid of being arrested by the military, said the death toll was high because one of the bombed houses had been hosting visitors to the pregnant woman. Independent online media, including Myanmar Now and Democratic Voice of Burma, released pictures and videos said to be of debris in the aftermath of the airstrike. The military did not comment on the incident in Mogok. In the past, the army has said it only attacks legitimate targets of war, accusing the resistance forces of being terrorists. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. After peaceful demonstrations were put down with lethal force, many opponents of military rule took up arms, and large parts of the country are now embroiled in conflict. The military government has stepped up airstrikes against the armed pro-democracy People's Defense Force and ethnic militias that have been fighting for greater autonomy for decades. The resistance forces have no defense against air attacks. The TNLA's statement said that another 17 people including two Buddhist monks had been killed and 20 others were injured in the first two weeks of August by airstrikes in areas controlled by the group. About 16 people, mostly truck drivers, were killed in airstrikes last Monday on a convoy of trucks that were parked on the road due to heavy fighting near the town of Sagaing in central Myanmar, according to independent Myanmar media reports. Opponents and independent analysts estimate the army now controls less than half the country while maintaining a tenacious grip on much of central Myanmar, including the capital, Naypyidaw. It has accelerated counter-offensives ahead of the election it has promised to hold at the end of this year in order to retake areas controlled by opposition forces. Critics say the elections won't be democratic because there is no free media and most leaders of Suu Kyi's party have been arrested. The plan is widely seen as an attempt to legitimize and maintain the military's rule. Several opposition groups have said they would seek to derail the election. - AP
