RI requests better conditions for migrant workers abroad<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Jupriadi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta\/Makassar<\/p>\n
In a bid to increase its bargaining power with Malaysia over the
\nlabor issue, Indonesia has asked for welfare guarantees for those
\nof its workers employed legally in the neighboring country.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Social Welfare Jusuf Kalla said on
\nWednesday that the government would establish welfare benchmarks
\nbefore sending workers to Malaysia.<\/p>\n
\"We will set benchmarks for workers' welfare, including
\nsalaries. If the standards are not met, we'd be better off
\npulling out our workers,\" Yusuf said after a Cabinet meeting
\npresided over by President Megawati Soekarnoputri.<\/p>\n
\"We have decided to take the offensive in handling the migrant
\nworker issue as the workers are not the problem but rather the
\nsolution (to unemployment). While there may indeed be some
\nproblems in sending them, they have nevertheless helped the
\nnation by reducing unemployment, so they deserve to be treated
\nproperly.\"<\/p>\n
He said that during bilateral talks on the labor issue held on
\nSept. 25 in Kinabalu City, the Indonesian government would ask
\nMalaysian companies wishing to employ Indonesians to comply with
\nthe minimum requirements.<\/p>\n
The government would also propose improvements in the workers'
\nwell-being, particularly regarding housing and education for the
\nworkers' children.<\/p>\n
Both countries are expected to approve a Memorandum of
\nUnderstanding on migrant workers on that date after having failed
\nto reach an agreement during the summit between President
\nMegawati and Malaysian President Mahathir Mohamad in July, just
\nbefore Kuala Lumpur put its stringent new Immigration Act into
\neffect.<\/p>\n
An exodus of hundreds of thousands of Indonesian undocumented
\nworkers followed. Most of them streamed into Nunukan, which
\nborders the Malaysian state of Sabah, sparking a human tragedy as
\nthe returning workers lacked food and shelter. Over 70 people
\ndied from various diseases during the exodus.<\/p>\n
The government has come under fire for its sluggishness in
\naddressing the issue, especially given the fact that Malaysia had
\nannounced its plan to enforce the new Immigration Act early this
\nyear. The government is also widely considered as having been
\ntardy in helping the deported workers.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Malaysia announced its approval of 500,000 work
\npermits for its construction sector, which has been crippled
\nfollowing the mass exodus. Most of the jobs in the sector were
\nformerly filled by Indonesian workers.<\/p>\n
Previously, Malaysia had restricted Indonesians to working as
\ndomestic helpers and in the plantation sectors.<\/p>\n
In Makassar, the South Sulawesi manpower and transmigration
\noffice announced a moratorium on labor exports to Malaysia,
\npending the results of bilateral talks between Jakarta and Kuala
\nLumpur later this month.<\/p>\n
Deputy chief of the office, Syahrir Tadjuddin, told The
\nJakarta Post the move had been made at the request of Minister of
\nManpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea, who listed South
\nSulawesi as being among the eight provinces banned from sending
\nworkers to Malaysia.<\/p>\n
\"We decided to stop labor exports indefinitely to prevent any
\nproblems the workers may face in the future,\" Syahrir said.<\/p>\n
Migrant workers hailing from the province accounted for
\n140,000 of the some 400,000 Indonesian undocumented workers in
\nMalaysia. About 40,000 South Sulawesi workers have returned home,
\nwhile the rest have already returned to Malaysia or are in the
\nprocess of doing so.<\/p>\n
There are about 20 labor export companies operating in South
\nSulawesi.<\/p>",
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