Governors told to assist returnee workers<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The central government has called on governors to help facilitate
\nthe ongoing exodus of illegal Indonesian workers from Malaysia
\nwho are stranded in North Sumatra with no money to reach home.<\/p>\n
Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea said
\nthat the workers, especially those without the funds to get home,
\nwere facing a critical situation and needed emergency aid to
\navoid Malaysia's new immigration law on illegal foreign workers.<\/p>\n
\"Under these circumstances, the local administrations where
\nthe workers are stranded should provide accommodation and
\nfinancial aid to enable them to get to their hometown,\" he told
\nThe Jakarta Post on Wednesday in response to North Sumatra's
\nrejection of sending workers home.<\/p>\n
North Sumatra Governor T. Rizal Nurdin has rejected funding
\nthe transportation of thousands of workers arriving at the
\nBelawan and Teluk Nibung seaports to their villages in East Java
\nand West Nusa Tenggara, because Indonesia and Malaysia had agreed
\nthat the workers would be sent directly to their home province.
\nHe said he would help the workers only if the central government
\nprovided financial assistance.<\/p>\n
The workers, now housed in numerous dormitories in the
\nprovincial capital of Medan and its outskirts, are waiting for
\nthe provincial administration's help.<\/p>\n
Only a small percentage of more than 100,000 workers returning
\nfrom Malaysia cannot afford to go home, while a larger number,
\nespecially those returning through Riau, Kalimantan and South
\nSulawesi, financed their trips or boarded ships provided by the
\ngovernment and Malaysian authorities.<\/p>\n
Thousands of workers were lined up in front of the immigration
\noffices on Batam Island and Nunukan, East Kalimantan, to apply
\nfor a passport to re-enter Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Nuwa Wea said that there was a bilateral agreement on the
\ndeportation but provinces should realize the workers were in a
\ndifficult and critical situation.<\/p>\n
\"They (workers) are Indonesian citizens deserving protection
\nfrom the government since they sought work overseas because of a
\nlack of job opportunities at home. They are real heroes, at least
\nto their relatives,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The minister said the central government would reimburse
\nprovinces that had helped fund the repatriation of workers.<\/p>\n
\"In fact, West Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, South Sulawesi and
\nRiau have been cooperative in helping workers,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The minister accepted a phone call while he discussed the
\nworkers' repatriation with the Nunukan regent at his office.<\/p>\n
Nuwa Wea also warned governors of the possible smuggling of
\nworkers to Malaysia and trafficking of women to be employed for
\nprostitution at home and overseas.<\/p>\n
\"We have told governors to coordinate with the authorities to
\nprevent brokers and syndicates from trafficking workers for
\nprostitution,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Nuwa Wea said he appreciated Malaysia's decision to extend the
\namnesty period from July 31 to Aug. 30 for foreigners working
\nillegally in that country.<\/p>\n
\"The decision was made at Indonesia's request since more than
\n90,000 Indonesians working illegally don't know about the law yet
\nas they are employed in remote areas of Malaysia.\"<\/p>\n
Almost half of the 800,000 Indonesians employed in Malaysia
\nare believed to have entered the country without the necessary
\ndocuments.<\/p>\n
Until Wednesday night, thousands of Indonesians were heading
\nfor Malaysian ports to make their way back home.<\/p>\n
The mass exodus of foreign workers follows Malaysia's decision
\nto implement the new immigration law, which threatens caning, a
\njail sentence or a fine for illegal foreign workers and
\nMalaysians employing them.<\/p>\n
The government is set to include the labor issue in the
\nbilateral talks between President Megawati Soekarnoputri and
\nMalaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Mohamad slated for Aug. 7 in
\nBali, to persuade the country to accept workers trained in
\nIndonesia and who had the necessary documents.<\/p>\n
In other developments, Reuters reported on Wednesday that the
\nTaiwan Cabinet's Council of Labor Affairs said it would put a
\nfreeze on hiring Indonesian workers effective from Thursday.<\/p>\n
The suspension was partly due to a high level of runaways of
\nIndonesian workers.<\/p>\n
The labor council did not say how long the suspension would
\nlast or if a total ban would be eventually imposed.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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