Five RI workers overseas may face death sentence<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): At least five Indonesian workers overseas have
\nbeen charged with murder and are facing possible death sentences.<\/p>\n
Director General of Manpower Placement and Development Din
\nSyamsuddin revealed on Tuesday that two workers in Saudi Arabia,
\ntwo workers in Singapore and one in Malaysia have all been
\ncharged with murder.<\/p>\n
In Saudi Arabia, Siti Zaenab from Bangkalan, East Java, could
\nface a death sentence for allegedly killing her employer's wife,
\nwhile Setiadi is charged with murdering a fellow Indonesian
\nworker.<\/p>\n
Two workers in Singapore, Ikaesih Dul Holid from Cirebon, West
\nJava and Sumiyem from Tulung Agung, East Java, were accused of
\nmurdering their employers' babies.<\/p>\n
Ikaesih is accused of throwing a baby from the third floor of
\nan apartment, while Sumiyem allegedly poured mercury into the
\nbaby's mouth.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, an Indonesian worker in Malaysia named Mariana is
\nalso accused of murdering her employer's baby in Johor Baru by
\nplacing adhesive tape all over the baby's mouth.<\/p>\n
Din said the government would do its best to save the lives of
\nthese Indonesians.<\/p>\n
\"We will do anything we can. We've hired lawyers to defend
\nthem, and we even asked Amnesty International to help us. Today,
\nit has asked us to send the pictures of the workers,\" he said in
\na hearing with House of Representatives' Commission VI on Human
\nResources and Religion Affairs.<\/p>\n
Among the five, the case seems to be more difficult for
\nMariana and Sumiyem as both are illegal workers.<\/p>\n
The issue has come to the fore again after the death penalty
\nwas carried out on Indonesian worker Warni in Saudi Arabia last
\nweek.<\/p>\n
Prior to this the government has been relatively successful in
\nsaving the lives of several workers abroad sentenced to death.<\/p>\n
In April a court in the United Arab Emirates sentenced
\nSriningsih from Brebes, Central Java to be stoned to death for
\nkilling a Sri Lankan co-worker.<\/p>\n
\"But our government succeeded in rescuing Sriningsih from the
\ndeath penalty. So she was only given a 15-year prison sentence.
\nBut we will also try to appeal that and ask for clemency,\" Din
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Earlier Kartini binti Karim from Karawang, West Java, who was
\naccused of adultery, also escaped death row in the same country
\nafter the government intervened.<\/p>\n
\"Unfortunately in Warni's case, we failed,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Minister of Manpower Bomer Pasaribu said the government did
\nits best to save Warni's life.<\/p>\n
\"We've recruited a top lawyer there which cost us around
\nUS$9,000. We asked prominent figures like ulemas to help us
\nnegotiate and we asked for clemency from the victim's family. We
\ntried everything, but it failed,\" said Bomer.<\/p>\n
According to Din, such efforts should be a joint effort
\nbetween various government institutions and not the sole
\nresponsibility of the Ministry of Manpower.<\/p>\n
Din said another important factor was the absence of a labor
\nagreement between these respective countries.<\/p>\n
He said Indonesia currently only has manpower agreements with
\nMalaysia and Kuwait which can help it protect its workers. He
\nadded that an agreement with Qatar, South Korea and Jordan is in
\nthe pipeline.<\/p>\n
\"An agreement with Saudi Arabia is very difficult to reach.
\nWe've talked with the Saudi Arabian Ambassador in Indonesia five
\ntimes to discuss it. We've talked with the Minister of Labor in
\nRiyadh, and President Abdurrahman Wahid himself has even talked
\nwith King Fahd...But they still seem unwilling,\" Din remarked.<\/p>\n
To protect Indonesian workers overseas, the Ministry has
\nemployed an insurance companies consortium system which does not
\nonly compensate accidents or deaths, but also provides legal aid.<\/p>\n
In Warni's case for example, the insurance company paid the
\nlawyers.<\/p>\n
Despite President Abdurrahman's assertion earlier this year
\nthat he would allow unskilled labor to be sent overseas, Bomer
\nsaid he would like to see the number go down in the coming year.<\/p>\n
He added that skilled labor was in high demand, with the most
\nrequested professions being nurses, agroindustry workers,
\nsailors, and Information Technology specialists.<\/p>\n
Bomer claimed that Japan has asked for around 400,000 nurses
\nwhile Taiwan needs around 400,000 construction workers from
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
In the United States, around 400,000 to 500,000 sailors are
\nsought.<\/p>\n
\"But the problem is, many of our workers don't meet the
\nstandards,\" said Bomer.<\/p>\n
He pointed out that out of 12,000 Indonesian applications for
\nnursing positions in Japan, only 2,000 were accepted.<\/p>\n
He further added that out of some 70,000 Indonesian sailors in
\nthe United States, at least 40,000 are \"troubled\" as they do not
\nmeet International Marine Organization (IMO) standards.<\/p>\n
There are over 1.2 million Indonesian workers overseas. Most
\nare located in the Middle East and Malaysia. (09)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/five-ri-workers-overseas-may-face-death-sentence-1447893297",
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