GEORGE TOWN, Aug. 8 -- The Penang Welfare Department is still trying to trace the parents or guardians of 18 children rescued from a warehouse in Bukit Mertajam last month, with the lack of documentation for most of them proving to be a major obstacle.

State Social Development, Welfare, and Non-Islamic Religious Affairs Committee chairman Lim Siew Khim said today that 12 of the children lack any personal documents, leaving their citizenship status unknown.

"Out of the 20 children rescued from the warehouse, only seven had proper documentation. The guardians for two of the children have since come forward to take them home," Lim said on the sidelines of the AI Horizon 2025 conference.

Among the 18 children remaining in state care is a n...