SEPANG, MALAYSIA — A 16-year-old boy from Bangladesh, who was found in a weak condition inside a shipping container in Port Klang in January, has been safely repatriated back to his home country.
The boy had sailed from Chittagong in Bangladesh to Port Klang, where he was discovered when the ship docked at the port on 17 January.
According to the Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, investigations showed that there were no elements of human trafficking in the case.
The boy was sent to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah hospital in Klang to receive medical attention until he was nursed back to health.
The Home Ministry contacted the Bangladesh High Commission to help prepare the boy’s travel papers since he did not have any documents, and enlisted the help of the NGO Yayasan Chow Kit to care for the child during the repatriation process.
Saifuddin stated that those without valid travel documents would typically be sent to immigration depots, but an exemption was given in this case. He noted that during his recent visit to Bangladesh in relation to the foreign worker issue, he informed the Bangladeshi Home Minister that he would facilitate the repatriation process.
Officials accompanied the boy from the Bangladesh High Commission to ensure a safe journey via a Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Dhaka. The boy will be brought back to his family, and Saifuddin described this as a manifestation of the Malaysia Madani principle to show compassion towards another human.
On 20 January, the South Klang police confirmed that the boy was discovered in the container at the Westport area of Port Klang on 17 January 9 pm, although he was not a stowaway attempting to sneak into the country. The foreign boy was unintentionally locked up in the container after playing in it with some friends in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
South Klang OCPD ACP Cha Hoong Fong stated that a 45-year-old shipping operator discovered the boy in a weak state in the container.
A TikToker, presumably working at Port Klang recorded the incident when auxiliary police at the port opened the container and rescued the kid.
The clip shows the kid appeared to be weary and frightened, confused with unfamiliar surroundings:
@al_zach90 Ah sudah!!!!!
