NEWS News

In 2024, JaCER received 17 reports on forced labor issues. The breakdown of the countries where these cases occurred was as follows: 14 cases in Malaysia, 2 cases in Singapore, and 1 case in China. In light of this situation, JaCER decided to conduct research and studies on forced labor, and as part of this, Dr. Ueda, stakeholder engagement manager, visited Malaysia.

Dr. Ueda met with the following people and organizations.

- Aisha Bidin (Professor Emeritus, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia)

- Edmond Bon Tai Soon (Malaysia's representative to the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights)

- Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia Malaysia (SUHAKAM)

- Ministry of Human Resources, etc.

The main points are as follows:

• In Malaysia, there are more than 16 laws related to labor. In particular, the Employment Act (1955), the Industrial Relations Act (1967), the Employees' Social Security Act (1969), the Occupational Safety and Health Act (1994), and the Whistleblower Protection Act (2010) are considered to be important laws in relation to forced labor. These laws have been revised in various ways in recent years in response to the significant deterioration in the working conditions of foreign workers due to the impact of the new coronavirus pandemic.

•  In Malaysia, national action plans have already been formulated and implemented for forced labor, human trafficking, and child labor (of which, the forced labor and human trafficking plans are currently under review). Furthermore, the publication of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights is also scheduled for April 2025. The effectiveness of these action plans is to be ensured by the establishment of a joint council of five related organizations.

•  With regard to legislation to make human rights due diligence mandatory, at the present time, the government is still in the preparatory stages of releasing the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, and has not yet reached the stage of full-scale consideration within the government.

•  The human rights violations committed by Kawaguchi, which had business relationships with several Japanese manufacturers, were reported in many major media outlets in Malaysia and attracted a great deal of attention. As there is a risk that similar human rights issues may occur with other suppliers, the importance of human rights due diligence is increasing.

Based on the results of this business trip, we plan to publish a more detailed survey report separately.