(Aug 3): The Washington Post in an editorial yesterday slammed the US State Department's decision to raise Malaysia's ranking in this year's human trafficking report.

The paper said a few classification decisions this year came under scrutiny, especially bumping Malaysia up to Tier 2 in the US report.

The report organises countries into tiers based on trafficking records: Tier 1 for nations that meet minimum US standards; Tier 2 for those that are making significant efforts to do so; Tier 2 "Watch List" for those that deserve special scrutiny; and Tier 3 for countries that fail to fully comply with the minimum US standards and are not making significant efforts to do so.

Malaysia would not be able to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership – the trade agreement the US spent months negotiating and fighting for in Congress, and pushed for a “fast-track” approval – if it remains in Tier 3.

The Post noted recent reports of plantation workers, mostly Rohingyas, being forced into unpaid labour, as well as the discovery of trafficking camps on the Malaysia-Thai border where mass graves were unearthed.

The paper said a move up in the State Department’s trafficking category essentially amounts to a statutory pat on the back, noting that Malaysia does not deserve congratulations, but censure that will force it to change.

On Monday, the US said while Malaysia did not fully meet minimum standards to eliminate trafficking, it was making significant efforts, citing proposed strengthening of anti-trafficking laws.

This month, US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to visit Malaysia, the current chair of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations. – The Malaysian Insider