{
  "id": 5055630,
  "title": "Putrajaya dismisses claim Malaysia will hire 200,000 Bangladeshi workers in 6 months",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/02/putrajaya-dismisses-claim-malaysia-will-hire-200-000-bangladeshi",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-02T08:23:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2026/09/02/putrajaya-dismisses-claim-malaysia-will-hire-200-000-bangladeshi-workers-in-6-months"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Putrajaya has rejected a claim that Malaysia plans to hire approximately 200,000 Bangladeshi workers within six months. The assertion, made by a junior minister, does not reflect the official stance of the Bangladeshi government, according to government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil, who is also the communications minister. During a press conference following a Cabinet meeting, Fahmi clarified that he had discussed the matter with the human resources minister, who confirmed that the statement originated from a junior minister.\n\nYesterday, the Bangladeshi junior minister for local government, rural development, and cooperatives, Mir Shahe Alam, had announced that the recruitment process would commence in phases starting late September. This announcement came after a meeting between Malaysia’s high commissioner to Bangladesh, Shuhada Othman, and Abdul Moyeen Khan, the Bangladeshi minister.\n\nFahmi also addressed concerns raised by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) regarding the safety of Myanmar for returning refugees. He noted that the 1,476 refugees in the initial phase of the voluntary repatriation program had voluntarily signed documents agreeing to return to Myanmar, as affirmed by Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan. Out of over 10,000 detained Myanmar refugees, 5,000 underwent screening by the home ministry before their names were forwarded to the Myanmar embassy. From this list, Myanmar agreed to the return of 1,476 refugees. Fahmi emphasized that the safety of these refugees in Myanmar was assured, as stated by the foreign minister.\n\nThe UNHCR highlighted the ongoing armed conflict and violence in Myanmar, indicating that a safe, dignified, and sustainable voluntary return of refugees is currently impossible.",
  "summary": "Government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil says a Bangladeshi junior minister’s statement does not represent Dhaka’s official position.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}