SELAYANG: Visiting the bustling and noisy Selayang market, the largest wholesale market in the Klang Valley, in the early dawn hours is like walking into a war zone in a foreign land.
Accompanying the noise is an unbearable and stomach-churning stench. Bloody severed chicken heads and innards are flung on the wet slippery floor: flies and rats are as much a part of the market activity as the heavy presence of foreign labourers and traders. A Malaysian who trades at the market said the foreigners have become increasingly protective of their turf, the spots where they conduct their business.Chicken scraps and other waste products clog the drains at the back entrance of the Selayang wet market, causing dirty water to flow into the walkways.
In the now quiet market, an Immigration officer tells FMT that raids are often carried out to flush out those working illegally, without proper papers. “We also recorded 175 workers with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards,” he said in a statement to FMT.