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{
    "id": 1286375,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1286375/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 28,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wafula",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 348,
        "legal_name": "Davis Wafula Nakitare",
        "slug": "davis-nakitare"
    },
    "content": "After the two months, when they decided to ask for payment from their Chinese employer, they were told that they could not be paid because they had been bought and should be ready to work for three years before a decision on whether they should be paid could be made. After another two months while working during a night shift, the five were thrown out by the employer without any compensation for their labour. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in order for the five to leave Malaysia, they need to pay a fine for overstaying their visa as they were not issued a work permit as earlier communicated to them. They now need money to pay for the overstay fine and flight tickets to come back home. Some of them had taken loans back home in Kenya in order to pay for the relevant agency fees for them to travel to Malaysia. Due to their lack of funds, the five are stuck in Malaysia. Mr. Speaker, Sir, the five have written to the Kenyan Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, seeking assistance, but have not received a response. They currently stay in a forest during the daytime and sleep in one of the warehouses near the forest at night. Mr. Speaker, Sir, as a Senator in this House, I am concerned. This situation raises questions:- (1) Are we still in the era of slave trade? (2) Is the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs aware of the problems that the five Kenyans are going through in Malaysia, and if yes, what steps have they taken to save the Kenyans? (3) What is the role of the Kenyan Embassy in Malaysia in ensuring that the five Kenyans are facilitated to come back to Kenya? Mr. Speaker, Sir, I, therefore, urge the Standing Committee on Labour and Social Welfare, in collaboration with the Ministries of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs and that of Interior and National Administration to inquire into this matter and ensure that the people who are involved in human trafficking activities are dealt with. I thank you."
}