KUALA LUMPUR: Indonesia said on Wednesday it has temporarily stopped sending its citizens to work in Malaysia, including thousands recruited for the plantation sector, citing a breach in a worker recruitment deal signed between the two countries.
The freeze is the latest blow for Malaysia - the world's second-largest palm oil producer and a key link in the global supply chain - which is facing a shortage of some 1.2 million workers that could derail its economic recovery.
Indonesia's Ambassador to Malaysia, Hermono, told Reuters the freeze was imposed after Malaysia's immigration authorities continued using an online recruitment system for domestic workers that had been linked to allegations of trafficking and forced labour.
