RI embassy always on its toes with illegal workers<\/p>\n
By Ridwan M. Sijabat<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (JP): The Indonesian embassy in Malaysia is
\nconstantly kept on its toes by the presence of hundreds of
\nthousands of Indonesian workers in the country.<\/p>\n
Their presence demands so much attention that the embassy here
\nis one of few Indonesian overseas missions staffed with a labor
\nattache. The problem is further complicated because many are in
\nthe country illegally.<\/p>\n
Some 500 Indonesians visit the embassy each day seeking to
\nmake their presence here legal. Some even lack passports and
\nprovisional travel documents which they need in the first step to
\nbecoming legal workers. Some even turned up at the embassy last
\nMonday, officially a public holiday.<\/p>\n
And though Malaysia is cracking down on illegal workers, the
\nnumber of illegal workers coming to the embassy has not abated.<\/p>\n
Embassy officials estimate that some 200 Indonesians arrive
\neach day to work illegally in Malaysia. Some get in through
\nunguarded shores after sailing from Sumatra. Some through the
\njungles in Kalimantan bordering Malaysia. Many others come as
\nlegitimate tourists but with the intention of working here.<\/p>\n
The embassy says some 600,000 Indonesian workers are
\nregistered and therefore working legally. But it believes that
\nfor every legal Indonesian worker there is another working
\nillegally.<\/p>\n
Abdul Karim, the embassy's labor attache, told The Jakarta
\nPost on Monday that the inflow of illegal Indonesian workers
\ncontinues because the syndicates that organize their departure
\nand entry do so by bribing government officials in both
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
Abdul Karim, who has been posted in Kuala Lumpur since 1992,
\nnoted that the Malaysian government has punished marine police
\nand immigration office officers who were found to have accepted
\nbribes. The Malaysian authorities have also jailed and fined
\nemployers for hiring illegal aliens, he said.<\/p>\n
The maximum punishment for such an offense is six months
\nimprisonment and M$10,000 (US$4,200). Illegal workers face the
\nsame maximum punishment in addition to deportation at the
\ncompletion of their jail term.<\/p>\n
Abdul Karim said some 1,500 Indonesians are currently in
\nMalaysian correctional institutions, mostly serving time for
\nworking in the country illegally.<\/p>\n
Patrols<\/p>\n
Malaysian authorities have taken steps to prevent the inflow
\nof unwanted Indonesian workers by tightening patrols along the
\nBorneo border and in the Straits of Malacca, Abdul Karim said. In
\nthe last five months alone, more than 10,000 Indonesians were
\nturned away before they reached Malaysian shores.<\/p>\n
Abdul Karim said the embassy has also received reports of
\nabuse against Indonesians caught working illegally in Malaysia,<\/p>\n
\"Many were robbed before being deported, others were `sold' to
\nemployment agencies which in turn supplied them to local
\nemployers, particularly plantation owners,\" he said.<\/p>\n
In spite of the grim situation, many Indonesian workers do
\nbenefit from being employed in Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Abdul Karim said many Indonesians working legally earn far
\nabove the minimum wage levels set by the Malaysian government,
\nthanks largely to their skills.<\/p>\n
The minimum wage levels are M$320 (US$135) a month for
\nconstruction workers, M$300 for plantation workers and M$250 for
\nthose working in the informal sector.<\/p>\n
\"Many Indonesian workers employed in the construction and
\nmanufacturing sectors are earning between M$1,000 and M$2,000
\nringgit a month,\" Abdul Karim said. Those that have difficulties
\nare mostly workers who have no particular skills, he added.<\/p>\n
Those working legally also enjoy legal protection and
\nMalaysia's social security program, he said.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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