A local NGO says Malaysian authorities have held a Cambodian garment worker in prison for nearly two months due to a visa issue, despite her severely deteriorating health.

Sry Ratha was arrested and detained in Kluang prison in Johor, Malaysia, on September 9, according to a statement issued yesterday by the Community Legal Education Center.

“We [tried to] visit her [in prison], but the Malaysian police didn’t allow us,” CLEC worker Bo Pao said of the NGO’s October 19 attempt to check on Ratha’s well-being. “When they found out we were CLEC, they didn’t let anyone talk to her.”

Although officials from Honsin Apparel Sdn Bhd – a Nike supplier – and the Cambodian embassy have said Ratha’s health is improving, her brother, who also works at the Nike supplier, told CLEC members that she suffers from abdominal pain and swelling, fever, intense coughing, and blood in her urine that continues to worsen, Pao said.

Continue reading: Sick worker being held in Malaysian jail – NGO

Source: (The Phnom Penh Post – October 30, 2013)