Boat people from Indonesia?

Much has been said and written about the plight of the Indonesians who feel compelled to seek a better life in neighboring countries, Malaysia and Singapore in particular. There also can be no question about the government's sincerity in trying to resolve the problem as well as is possible under the current very difficult circumstances.

Yet, in spite of all that has been done, the uncomfortable impression is hard to shed that not enough attention is being paid to the issue of Indonesians looking for jobs in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. No doubt, this lingering perception springs, at least in part, from the strong humanitarian dimension of this particular problem.

What is happening is that the fears that worsening economic conditions in this country will force thousands of Indonesians to migrate overseas are becoming reality. And the economic and humanitarian consequences of this reality are huge.

It was reported earlier this week that in Malaysia alone about 19,000 illegal migrants -- almost all of them Indonesians -- were reported to have been arrested since January, which is twice the number caught during the whole of last year. Police raids on squatter villages are launched almost nightly. The Malacca Strait is being patrolled intensively by Malaysian navy and police boats assisted by helicopters.

Realizing the well-nigh impossibility of effectively stemming the tide of refugees coming from across the strait, Malaysia is penalizing boat captains and citizens who are found to be harboring illegal immigrants -- a measure that could be less effective considering that many people from Indonesia have settled for years in Malaysia. Some of them are surely likely to offer convenient hiding places for newcomers.

To a lesser extent the same problems also confront Singapore. But while Malaysia offers Indonesians comparatively familiar cultural and racial surroundings, Singapore presents would-be refugees a much more alien urban and racial environment, as well as harsher penalties. Nevertheless, Singapore too is feeling the impact of Indonesia's economic crisis.

To Indonesia's neighbors, the issue of the illegal workers presents an awkward dilemma. On the one hand, both Singapore and Malaysia have the well-being of their own people to take care of. Malaysia, and to a considerably lesser extent Singapore, are also feeling the crunch of the regional crisis. Neither can afford to play host to tens of thousands of newcomers competing for jobs.

On the other hand, we can be certain that neither Singapore nor Malaysia is feeling very comfortable meting out harsh punishments to people who, compelled by hunger and want, are coming to their shores to find a better life. In fact, the Malaysian authorities in particular have already shown considerable goodwill by allowing thousands of illegal Indonesian migrants to be employed in plantations.

The big question now is what Indonesia can do to alleviate the burden which the prolonged crisis has created for the masses of Indonesians, especially the hundreds of thousands of people who have lost their jobs and their livelihoods. The stop-gap measures that have been taken so far certainly have their merits. But only a comprehensive solution will suffice to really allay the pressing burden. It is rather comforting to see that the latest signals emerging from the government seem to indicate that at last a real beginning is being made to drag the country out of the present crisis.