PUTRAJAYA, July 12 — The deportation process for travellers with Not To Land (NTL) notices will now once again be handled by airline companies and no longer by third parties, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said.
He said this was decided at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim here today.
Saifuddin Nasution said returning this responsibility back to airlines was also in line with Chapter 5 of the Convention on International Aviation set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the Immigration Act 1959/63.
“This is in accordance with the Immigration Act and ICAO which clearly states that they (airlines) are the parties responsible for handling the matter.
“When travellers want to depart from their last location, the airline company is responsible before issuing a boarding pass, they have to know whether the traveller has a return ticket or not, then they will issue a boarding pass… that’s the international standard,” he said.
When asked if the services of the company currently managing the NTL (Mono Circle Sdn Bhd) has been terminated following the Cabinet’s decision, Saifuddin Nasution said: “The Home Affairs Ministry and the Transport Ministry have to manage. The cabinet only makes policy decisions.”
Saifuddin Nasution, meanwhile, said 14,977 travellers were issued NTL notices between January and June this year.
“(Those issued NTL) were detained between one and seven days, depending on the processes involved,” he said, adding that on average, some 80 NTL notices were issued daily.
He also said that among the main reasons for travellers being imposed the NTL notice were not having a return ticket, failing to provide clear lodging details, or having insufficient cash money.
Travellers from Bangladesh, Pakistan and India had the highest number of NTL, he added.
On July 5, Saifuddin Nasution said NTL notices to travelers will only be determined by Immigration officers of Grade KP41 and above with immediate effect, compared to the current practice which allows KP29 officers to do so.
On media reports that the Chinese national implicated in the recent commotion at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) has no exit record so far, Saifuddin said this was inaccurate as the woman had left the country on July 4.
“Immigration Department records show that she flew out through Shenzen Airlines flight ZH5030 at 8.55 pm on July 4,” he said.
