Tons of Malaysians are utilizing the Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) Complex in Johor Baru for free lodging.
At the start of the day, they cram with the rush-hour crowd heading across the causeway.
There are already queues forming as early as 5am, but this group of Malaysian ‘backpackers’ regularly arrive on time.
After clearing customs and immigration, they ride a bus and head into the island city where they work as factory workers and cleaners.
They make their journey back to the CIQ complex after work in the evenings, together with hordes of other returning Malaysian workers.
This is where the similarity in their daily routine ends.
Instead of heading back to where they came from, these ‘backpackers’ spend their nights within the CIQ complex grounds and at the JB Sentral.
There are about 100 of them who have constantly been making themselves at home at JB Sentral, despite being chased away multiple times by security guards and authorities.
They use the public toilets to clean themselves and sleep on the floor, benches and chairs. There is also air conditioning at JB Sentral, which makes the nights more conducive.
These ‘backpackers’ are usually not cooperative when approached.
[Source]
