296 N. Koreans surrender in Malaysia for repatriation

A total of 296 North Koreans have surrendered to the Immigration Department in Malaysia's Sarawak state for repatriation, the media reported.

A senior state official on Tuesday said the authorities had given the North Koreans until April 11 to surrender to the department as their passes had expired, The Star daily reported.

He said that as of Tuesday, 113 of the 117 North Koreans who were on the department's list had surrendered.

"As for the remaining four, their employer has assured us that they will surrender today (Tuesday). Besides that, 183 North Koreans who overstayed their social visit passes had also surrendered to the department in Sarawak," the official said.

He added that these North Koreans came to Malaysia when they did not need entry visas and their employers never showed up at the department to present their work permits.

"These employers have confirmed that there are no more North Koreans with them. Our department would like to state that until this day, 296 have surrendered," he said, adding that the North Koreans would leave the country in stages with the cooperation of their employers.

--IANS

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