Эксперты призывают Малайзию ввести обязательную регистрацию граждан перед поездками в опасные зоны

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia should strengthen its voluntary system for tracking citizens abroad and consider compulsory registration for those travelling to high-risk destinations or taking part in high-risk activities, say experts. Universiti Utara Malaysia Disaster Management Institute director Dr Chong Khai Lin said the existing voluntary registration system remains useful but should be strengthened to reflect the growing number of Malaysians travelling, working, studying or participating in adventure activities abroad. “There should be a clear information-sharing mechanism involving travellers, travel agencies, tour or expedition operators, local guides, Malaysian diplomatic missions and families or emergency contacts in Malaysia,” she said yesterday. According to Wisma Putra, 55 Malaysians remained unreachable following devastating flash floods and landslides in Nepal’s Rasuwa district on Aug 26. Currently, Malaysians travelling to high-risk areas abroad are urged to register voluntarily and regularly update their contact details via the e-Konsular portal at https://ekonsular.kln.gov.my. During a disaster, information is one of the most important resources for emergency management, said Chong. “Authorities need to quickly establish who may be affected, where they were expected to be, who they were travelling with and how their families or local operators can be contacted,” she added. For organised, higher-risk activities such as trekking, mountaineering, adventure expeditions and pilgrimages, licensed travel agencies and organisers can play an important role, she added. “They could maintain a verified traveller manifest, itinerary, local operator or guide information and emergency contacts. “They should also have a designated emergency focal person who can communicate with local authorities when an incident occurs,” she said. Chong added that travellers also need timely information about emerging risks at their destinations, including severe weather, floods, landslides, earthquakes, political instability, road closures and changes to official travel advisories. “Effective disaster communication must be two-way, with travellers providing authorities with information that can help locate them, while authorities and travel operators provide travellers with information that can help them avoid or respond to danger,” she said. Criminologist Dr Zalmizy Hussin said Malaysia should consider moving from the voluntary system to a more structured and targeted compulsory registration system. “Disasters such as the recent floods in Nepal exposed the main weakness of the existing framework, which is the lack of real-time data on the movement and location of Malaysians abroad. “The current voluntary system via e-Konsular or MySafeTravel relies entirely on individual initiative, and experience shows that registration rates remain low, particularly among trekkers, pilgrims and independent travellers who perceive the risk as minimal,” he said. Zalmizy said the voluntary registration system is insufficient to address large-scale emergencies. “While it functions as a general information channel and serves concerned travellers, it fails to achieve its core objective during a crisis, which is ‘knowing who is where’,” he said.