KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — Malaysia has not budged from the Tier 2 watch list of the US annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report released yesterday.

According to the report, although Malaysia made progress in the last reporting period, which led to its upgrade from the bottom tier last year, it did not show an increase in efforts to eliminate trafficking.

"The Government of Malaysia does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so,” reads the report.

"Despite these measures, the government did not demonstrate overall increasing anti-trafficking efforts compared to the previous reporting period; therefore, Malaysia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List for the second consecutive year.”

Malaysia was upgraded from the bottom tier, Tier 3, to its current standing in last year’s TIP report, but the decision was criticised as an ostensible move to allow Malaysia to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) with the US, as the latter imposes an automatic non-aid and non-trade sanction on countries at the bottom tier.

Among the recommendations in this year’s report is for Malaysia to publicly gazette and fully implement the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (Amendment) Act 2015, which was passed in Parliament last year.

It also calls on Malaysia to allow trafficking victims to obtain employment and move freely in and out of government and NGO facilities, and increase the number and effectiveness of trafficking prosecutions and convictions including of complicit officials.

Elsewhere in the region, Thailand was upgraded from the bottom Tier 3 to Tier 2 watch list, and was similarly marked as Malaysia as not fully meeting the minimum standards but "is making significant efforts to do so”.

Myanmar however, was downgraded to Tier 3, noting that "although Burma meets the criteria for the Tier 2 Watch List, because it has been on the Tier 2 Watch List for four years, it is no longer eligible for that ranking and is therefore ranked Tier 3”.