EVEN refugees are not spared by syndicates trafficking in people.

Posing as "travel agents", these traffickers paint vivid images of a better life to poor families, charging them exorbitant travelling fees to the promised land.

But what the refugees find at the end of the journey is a life working for slave-drivers in plantations, factories, sweatshops and fishing trawlers who just want cheap manpower.

Women are generally spared manual labour and forced into prostitution, regardless of age.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees representative to Malaysia Alan Vernon said there had been several cases of refugees being tricked into paying huge amounts with nothing at the end of the road but misery.

These cases have generally not be reported by the media which has led to little being known about this racket.

Many refugees who come here from Myanmar are not aware that they are victims of human trafficking. We have received reports from re-fugees of being cheated by illegal travel agents and forced to work for several months before being released.

They are the lucky ones as there are some unfortunate ones who never see their families again.

Many refugees fall prey to traffickers because they are desperate to leave their war-torn countries," he said, adding that most refugees were poor and did not have travel documents.

They have no choice but to leave illegally with traffickers taking advantage of their predicament.

Also read:
» Parents blinded by syndicate members' promises of wealth

» Malaysia is transit point

» Meeting the child traffickers head-on