Kuala Lumpur, May 26 (IANS): The UN's former special envoy for Myanmar, Razali Ismail, has accused Malaysian officials of working with human trafficking syndicates, following the discovery of 139 graves believed to contain the bodies of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants, media reported on Tuesday.
"Some of our people in uniform have become part of that. We have to break the back of that," Razali said.
On Monday, Malaysian police announced the discovery of 139 grave sites in 28 detention camps, lying deep in the jungles of Perlis near the Thailand border, Channel News Asia reported.
"It's time. It's more than time that we come to grips with recognising that the transnational crime is huge in Southeast Asia," he added, explaining the situation was embarrassing and hurting the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean).
Villagers in the area have expressed shock and disgust at the atrocities committed in the neighbourhood. Some described what had happened to the migrants as "pitiful".
"It's really pitiful. It should not have happened. The government should have taken action to stop this," said a villager, adding that "anything can happen in the jungle".
Following the discovery, the police forensic team has started exhuming the bodies from the 139 graves. Among the first remains removed from the jungle was a highly decomposed body that had been left out there for over two weeks. A postmortem is being conducted to determine the cause of death.
The body -- believed to be that of an adult detainee -- was severed into three parts. It was found in what looked like a cowshed at one of the smaller camps in the rugged terrain of Bukit Burma, less than a kilometre from the Thai border.
"It was separated into three different parts: the upper body, the torso and the lower body," said Inspector-General of Police Asmawati Ahmad.
According to experts, human traffickers have been active along the Thailand-Malaysian border for years.
Despite a security outpost in Wang Kelian, migrants -- including women and children -- have been smuggled into Malaysia undetected.
The latest discoveries have revealed large-scale detention camps where victims were held and, possibly, tortured.
So far, two police officers have been arrested, along with 35 other Malaysians, in connection with human trafficking.