Foreign national criminals will be declared Persona Non Grata

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 13  -- Foreigners including Chinese who are involved in criminal activities and convicted will be declared 'Persona Non Grata', said Immigration Department director-general Datuk Khairul Dzaimee Daud.

He said the foreigners would be listed as Persona Non Grata after they were sentenced, and would be deported from this country.

"After they have undergone prison terms for criminal offences, they will all be deported and listed as  immigrants who are banned from entering Malaysia (Persona Non Grata).

"That is the decision for all foreigners who commit offences under the Immigration Act (1959) regardless of the type of pass they have," he said when contacted by Bernama.

Persona Non Grata is a person who cannot be accepted by a country forever after being found guilty of committing an offence (crime) which cannot be forgiven (serious) while he is in a country.

Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid Bador, who was also in concert with Khairul Dzaimee, said declaring a foreigner as Persona Non Grata is one of the effective ways to curb crime, especially the macau scam syndicates.

"Macau scam syndicates in this country are becoming more widespread, with many victims being deceived involving the loss of millions of ringgit, committed by Chinese nationals.

"Recently, I had a discussion with him (Khairul Dzaimee) on this matter and the power to declare a person Persona Non Grata lies with immigration," he told Bernama during a courtesy visit to his office in Bukit Aman here, recently.

Abdul Hamid said Chinese nationals were most frightened when they were blacklisted from entering Malaysia because they not only could not set up a crime syndicate but also faced severe punishments in their home country.

-- BERNAMA