Belgium Ambassador Dr Frank Van de Craen today gave his assurance to the family of A Srimalar, presently languishing in a Belgian prison, that he would seek more details on her arrest from his government soon.

Van de Craen also told reporters that he had contacted the Belgian authorities yesterday for further information on the arrest of the Malaysian citizen, adding that he needed more information from the relevant authorities from his home country.

"It is not always that information comes to the (Belgian) ministry of foreign affairs (from other agencies on cases involving foreign nationals)," he said, adding that he expects a reply soon.

Earlier he met with Srimalar's friends and family members, including her brother Gunasegaran, who had visited the Belgian embassy in Kuala Lumpur to inquire about her status.

Srimalar, 35, is being held at the Berkendael prison in Brussels, reportedly for suspicion of human trafficking. She has been under detention for more than four months now.

Later in the day Van de Craen also helped Gunasegaran make a 20-minute telephone contact with Srimalar.

'Lured' to Belgium

Srimalar was charged in court on Wednesday for allegedly possessing forged documents and involvement in human trafficking. Sentencing is due on May 24.

Quoting Malaysian embassy officials, Malay Mail had reported that Srimalar was arrested upon arriving at Zaventem International Airport on Dec 26 last year.

Belgian immigration authorities arrested her with a Sri Lankan acquaintance, after suspecting the latter was carrying a forged passport.

Embassy officials told the daily that they were only informed by Belgian authorities of the detention two weeks ago, some four months after her initial arrest.

Srimalar's nephew, S Muresh (photo), believed that his aunt may have been lured to Belgium, thinking that there was a job for her there.

It was learnt that Srimalar was having trouble with her marriage and business. She was believed to have obtained a 90-day visiting pass prior to her arrival in Belgium.

Violation of human rights

Gunasegaran's lawyer P Uthayakumar told reporters that there was a possibility that Srimalar was subjected to human rights abuses.

"There seem to be a violation of human rights. In this case, a detainee has been held for four and a half months on mere suspicion," he said.

He added that Srimalar had been jailed for the duration even before being brought to court, which only happened two days ago.

"Our question is, why was she not released on bail? How will the Belgian Ambassador feel, if his national (was jailed without a chance to post bail pending trial) for the same alleged offence here?

"We are surprised that a model human rights (advocating) country like Belgium, would treat a Malaysian in this fashion," said Uthayakumar.

Should the matter not be resolved soon, Uthayakumar said the family would contemplate lodging a formal complaint with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg or even the World Court in Hague.