SEPANG, Sept 25 — Parents of Malaysian students in Indonesia have commended the government for its decision to evacuate students from areas badly affected by haze, saying it is a relief to see them back home.
Nazri Abdul Rahman, 51, said he was very worried about the condition of his daughter Siti Shuzriani, a third semester Syariah law degree student at Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim, in Pekanbaru, Riau.
“When she said the Air Pollutant Index had hit 300-600, I was certainly worried. If possible I wanted to ask her to come back or go to a safe place but she said had to wait for the government’s decision.
“Yesterday afternoon when she said she would return today, I felt so relieved,” he told Bernama at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2) here today when receiving his daughter.
Siti Shuzriani was among 31 students of Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim who returned on an AirAsia flight at about 6pm. They were received at the airport by Foreign Ministry deputy secretary-general of bilateral relations, Datuk Amran Mohamed Zin.
For Tengku Nor Badriah Tengku Muhiddin, 47, the return of her daughter Putri Zarith Sofia Azmi was something she had been looking forward to.
“When the smog level was high I was very worried about her over there although she did not complain of any problems.
“I contacted her every day and advised her not to go out of the house,” she said.
Permanent vice-chairman of the Malaysian Students Association in Indonesia, Nurul Huda Sofia Morsalin, said although she is back in Malaysia, she is in constant contact with students there via WhatsApp to do her university assignments.
The bachelor’s degree student of Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang, Jawa Timur said the association was in regular contact with the embassy to ensure the welfare of students in haze-hit provinces and also kept them updated on the latest situation via various platforms.
“The Malaysian Embassy there is very efficient in managing the evacuation process for students and the Indonesian government also gave good cooperation, including postponing lecture sessions,” she said. — Bernama
