RI women workers detained in Malaysia<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): State Minister for Women's Roles Mien Sugandhi
\nexpressed concern Tuesday over the fate of 432 Indonesian women
\nnow detained by Malaysian immigration authorities for illegal
\nentry.<\/p>\n
She blamed their detention on brokers who had promised the
\nwomen jobs in Malaysia and taken them there without proper
\ndocuments.<\/p>\n
"The government should take strong action against those
\nbrokers," she told a hearing of House Commission VIII on people's
\nwelfare and health.<\/p>\n
There are now 99,948 Indonesian women registered as workers in
\nMalaysia, 41,962 of them work in the informal sector.<\/p>\n
The women in detention had sought work as servants.<\/p>\n
"They may be able to find employment if... there are
\nMalaysians willing to hire them," Mien said.<\/p>\n
Malaysian immigration authorities are detaining 2,033
\nIndonesians, including the women, at great cost.<\/p>\n
"The Malaysian government may soon deport them, maybe to Riau
\nprovince which is the closest to Malaysia," Mien said.<\/p>\n
"If deportations go ahead, and in great numbers, then
\nIndonesia must prepare to receive them, give them shelter and
\nreturn them to their respective hometowns," Mien was quoted by
\nAntara as saying.<\/p>\n
More Indonesian women are heading overseas for work. According
\nto Mien's office, 3,221 women are registered as working in the
\nUnited Arab Emirates, 19,992 in Hong Kong and 21,000 in
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
Indonesian workers in Malaysia receive on average Rp 475,000
\n(US$187) a month, about Rp 600,000 in the United Arab Emirates,
\nRp 1.1 million in Hong Kong and Rp 400,000 in Singapore.<\/p>\n
The government has pledged to phase out the sending of
\nunskilled workers abroad, and stepped up efforts to send only
\npeople with better skills. The reason for the stance was the
\nvarious complaints about poor treatment that Indonesian workers,
\nespecially women, receive on the hand of their employers.<\/p>\n
Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief had once admitted that the
\nfate of those women working in menial jobs "brought tears to our
\nface".<\/p>\n
Mien promised to campaign to improve the workers' conditions.
\nHer office's programs include teaching prospective female workers
\nabout labor laws, teaching them the language of destination
\ncountries and opening bank accounts for them.<\/p>\n
She said her office had also prepared inputs for the House of
\nRepresentatives' deliberation of the manpower bill.<\/p>\n
Separately, women's rights activist Tati Krisnawaty said
\ngovernment regulations on exporting labor were the root cause of
\nmany labor problems.<\/p>\n
"The philosophy underlying the regulations is that workers are
\na trade commodity... and this leads to the denial of workers'
\nrights," Tati of Women's Solidarity for Human Rights said
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
Unless this view changed Indonesian workers abroad would
\ncontinue to face the same problems, she said. She cited violence
\nand disputes with employers as among the most frequent problems
\nfacing workers.<\/p>\n
The latest, widely publicized case of abuse is on Hartarti, a
\n15-year-old servant, who was allegedly tortured last week by her
\nemployer's wife and 13-year-old son in Singapore. (39\/aan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-women-workers-detained-in-malaysia-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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