Deceived women jobseekers stranded in Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
Singgir Kartana, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
The dream of three women from Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara, of
\nworking in the neighboring country of Malaysia has ended in a
\nnightmare and they are now stranded in Yogyakarta, being taken
\ncare of by, Tjut Nyak Dien, a local nonprofit foundation which
\ndeals with problems and issues concerning women.<\/p>\n
The story began when Sumiatun, 23, Rusmiati, 23, Nurmi, 17,
\nand 11 other women left their hometown in mid-September after a
\nman named Umar said that he could help them find work as
\nhousemaids in Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Claiming to be a manpower agency representative, Umar said
\nthey would definitely get jobs and each earn as much as Rp
\n1,000,000 a month.<\/p>\n
Umar's offer was made even more tempting because they were not
\nrequired to pay anything.<\/p>\n
\"He said that his firm would pay the transportation fares and
\nother expenses until we got a job in Malaysia. He then said that
\nwe could reimburse the money in installments,\" Rusmiati said.<\/p>\n
What the women should do, according to Umar, was prepare the
\nnecessary documents.<\/p>\n
Umar then took them to Jakarta for a test. He said that those
\nwho failed the test would be sent home at the company's expense.<\/p>\n
When the three women, and one other, failed a health
\nexamination, Umar denied having promised to send them home and
\ntold the women that they would work in Lampung.<\/p>\n
Umar became angered by the women's insistence that they be
\nsent home.<\/p>\n
\"Since then he has treated us inhumanely. I was almost
\nstrangled once because I refused to pay Rp 2 million Umar claimed
\nto be the expenses for my trip and meals. He knew from the start
\nthat none of us had any money,\" said Nurmi.<\/p>\n
What Sumiatun experienced was no less frightening.<\/p>\n
One day, Umar took her to a hotel where he tried to rape her.
\n\"Fortunately, I had the chance to scream for help, which made
\nhotel security realize what was happening,\" the mother of one
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
On Oct. 9, the four women left Jakarta, with Umar saying that
\nthey were being sent home. Again, the man did not keep his word.
\nInstead of being taken to Sumbawa, they were taken to Yogyakarta
\nand placed in a house located in Maguwoharjo, Sleman.<\/p>\n
To avoid the possibility of further inhumane treatment,
\nSumiatun, Rusmiyati and Nurmi decided to escape. Unfortunately,
\nthe other women became seriously ill and could not join them.<\/p>\n
\"She was suffering from typhoid. We were very sorry that we
\ndid not have the chance to know her name, but she is also from
\nLombok,\" Rusmiati said.<\/p>\n
Over the next few hours, the three women wandered the city of
\nYogyakarta, a place they had never known. They were just trying
\nto get as far away as possible from the place they had been
\nlocked up.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, a man named Marsudi of Maguwoharjo helped them
\nand took them to the Depok Police sector for help. The police
\nlater called the Tjoet Nyak Dien Foundation and requested that
\nthey take care of the trio.<\/p>\n
\"We're currently trying to help them restore their
\npsychological condition. We're cooperating with the police to
\nunravel the case,\" Lita Anggraini of the Tjoet Njak Dien
\nFoundation said.<\/p>\n
The three, still depressed, just start crying whenever they
\nare asked to remember the place where they left the other girl.
\nThey cannot remember the streets or roads they had passed during
\ntheir escape as the only thing on their minds was trying to get
\naway from Umar, who had threatened to kill them.<\/p>\n
The foundation has not yet managed to contact their relatives
\nin Lombok.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/deceived-women-jobseekers-stranded-in-yogyakarta-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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