Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia Hermono told The Jakarta Post that he was arranging to visit immigration centers in the Malaysian state of Sabah in the coming week to investigate the allegations.

“I’ve sent a letter to the Malaysian immigration authorities for access to see the conditions in the centers firsthand. Hopefully, we will be given the time next week,” he said on Wednesday.

Following a meeting involving the Indonesian missions in Malaysia, the Sabah Immigration Authority, the Sabah Health Agency (JKNS) and the Coalition of Sovereign Migrant Workers (KBMB), the Foreign Ministry reported that a total of 18 Indonesians had died while being held at the Sabah Immigration Detention Center in 2021, while another seven had died from January to June this year.

“They died from various diseases such as heart ailments, COVID-19 and pneumonia,” Hermono said, adding that the main cause of the high mortality rate were delays in the repatriation process due to pandemic travel restrictions.

Previously, in a report titled “Like in Hell”, the KBMB alleged that Sabah detention officers showed a lack of concern for the well-being of detainees, which had led to the deaths of at least 18 Indonesian nationals.

The report, based on interviews with Indonesian citizens who were deported from Malaysia, focuses on the Tawau Immigration Detention Center, where the report alleged a pattern of mistreatment, malign neglect and violent treatment had emerged.

The death toll cited in the report was based on data provided to the KBMB by the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta, which reported 2,191 deportations from January 2021 to June 24 this year.

Up to 260 people – including children – were placed in windowless cells about the size of a badminton court, where there were only three toilets, the report said. Detainees were often made to huddle together while sleeping due to the cramped space, and some even had to sleep in the toilet areas due to overcrowding.

“Unpleasant smells filled several blocks, while the toilets were extremely dirty," the report said. "There were no beds provided. Each detainee slept on a hard floor with only cardboard as a bed.”

Abu Mufakhir, an activist from the KBMB, believed the reported deaths had all been preventable.

“They had been sick and complaining for a while but did not receive prompt medical treatment. They were only brought to the hospital when they were in critical condition,” he told the Post on Thursday.

The advocacy group pointed to an outbreak of scabies among detainees, during which the detainees had asked immigration officers for aid but were allegedly told mockingly to scratch their itches instead.

Others allegedly died after being treated violently at the facility. Among them was Suardi Bin Samsudin, an inmate at Tawau who “was beaten by jail officers in front of other inmates” and later died from his injuries.

Dinda Nuur Annisaa Yura of rights group Solidaritas Perempuan commented on the allegations of inhumane treatment by Malaysian immigration officers, saying that it was akin to the treatment meted out by colonial-era guards, wherein detainees were “dominated”.

“From here we see a paradigm, a perspective that does not see these detainees as human,” she said during the launch of the KBMB report.

The Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta declined to comment, but the head of the Malaysian Immigration Authority (JIM) told Malaysian local media that the allegations in the report were “baseless”.

During a meeting with Sabah officials on Thursday, the Indonesian side demanded that deportees be swiftly repatriated at the Malaysian state’s expense, especially now that pandemic curbs had eased. They also called for improvements to the detention cells, including better access to health and sanitary facilities.

“For their part, the Consulate General and the Consulate in Sabah will be increasing inspections, logistical support for clothing, food, medical supplies and equipment, as well as providing PCR tests during the repatriation process,” the ministry said in a separate statement.