Agence France-Presse - 11/13/2008 10:41 AM GMT
The Philippine Commission on Human Rights is to investigate allegations that Filipinos deported from Sabah are being abused by Malaysian authorities, the chairman of the agency said Thursday.
Commission head Leila de Lima said a team would visit Sabah to probe allegations that Filipinos have been beaten and maltreated while in detention centres there.
"As an independent constitutional office mandated to protect, promote and fulfill the human rights of every Filipino, whether residing here or abroad... we are duty-bound to look after their welfare," she said in a statement.
She also cited appeals by congressmen in the southern Philippines on behalf of newly-arrived Filipinos who had been sent home as part of Malaysia's crackdown on illegal aliens.
De Lima did not say when the team would be leaving but remarked that their mission would be coordinated with Malaysia's commission on human rights.
Last month, a fact-finding body charged that illegal Filipino workers, expelled from Malaysia's Sabah state, had been severely beaten by police. It also said thousands of others, including women and children, remained in Malaysian detention centres "suffering from inhumane conditions."
The Philippine government believes about 200,000 Filipinos are working in Sabah but Malaysian local officials say the number is far higher.
Filipinos in the south frequently cross the maritime border to Sabah to seek work there.
Malaysia announced a fresh crackdown on illegals early this year and thousands of Filipinos have been deported since.
http://news.my.msn.com/regional/article.aspx?cp-documentid=1783920
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