I CANNOT help but feel sorry for the 51 illegals detained by the Kelantan Anti-Smuggling Unit and sent to the Immigration detention camp in Tanah Merah when they were trying to return to their homeland for Hari Raya ("51 illegals caught short in Raya trip" -- NST, Oct 10).

Why stop them when they were leaving Malaysia? Would it not be better to stop illegals from coming in, since the enforcement officers know how they can get into Malaysia?

It seems heartless of our government to detain them when they have spent so much of their hard-earned money to pay their way home.