Fahmi in KL to discuss migrants' repatriation

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Semarang/Surabaya/Pekanbaru

Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Fahmi Idris visited Malaysia on Tuesday, amid complaints from Malaysian officials over the slow progress of the deportation of illegal migrant workers.

While in Malaysia, Fahmi is set to hold talks with Home Minister Datuk Azmi Khalid and Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi on Wednesday and Friday respectively, a senior Indonesian official I Made Arka said on Tuesday.

The visit was aimed at ensuring a smooth process for the illegal workers, who opt to take advantage of a Malaysian government amnesty program during Ramadhan and voluntarily leave Malaysia, said Made.

The amnesty program will end on Nov. 14, and after the end of amnesty period, the estimated 400,000 illegals that remain will be subject to deportation and harsh punishment, which could include a hefty fine, imprisonment and/or whipping.

As of Tuesday, hundreds of Indonesian migrant workers were lining up at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to obtain passport substitute documents (SPLP) that would allow them to return home.

Despite the large number of workers, the process was still manageable, claimed Arka, the Director General of Migrant Worker Placement at the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, who has been in Malaysia since Tuesday.

Arka confirmed earlier that many migrant workers had fallen victim to SPLP document scalpers to speed up the process.

The official fee to obtain should be 40 ringgit (US$10.5). Arka called on the workers to be patient when waiting for the SPLP documents.

Separately, Malaysian authorities reiterated their concerns that the number of Indonesian migrant workers returning home was still not encouraging as of Tuesday. Just under 9,000 illegals had responded as of Tuesday to the amnesty offer by the Malaysian government.

The number was far below expectations by the Malaysian government, which had hoped that some 20,000 Indonesians would return home each day.

"I cannot understand why they are not taking this opportunity since the government is firm in not extending the amnesty period beyond November 14," Azmi Khalid was quoted as saying by AFP.

Mohamad Nasir Osman, acting southern Johor state immigration chief, told AFP that the poor response was apparently because the migrants had not received their salaries.

Meanwhile in Jakarta, responding to Malaysia's complaints, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda said that the Indonesian government had provided two cars to help expedite the registration process for migrant workers wishing to return home. The cars -- which doubled as mobile registration posts to reach out to Indonesian migrant workers in remote areas of Malaysia -- had already been deployed eastern Malaysia on Borneo Island.

Meanwhile, hundreds of Indonesians continued to trickle home on Tuesday, flooding seaports and airports across the country. Over 100 illegal migrant workers arrived in Achmad Yani Airport in Semarang, including three infants. Several dozen more continued their journey by air to Surabaya, while some went by bus to their villages in Central Java.

Dozens of other migrant workers arrived in Dumai seaport, in Riau province.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is set to observe the return of Indonesian migrant workers at the seaport on Wednesday.

In the visit, the president plans to hold talks with the returning migrant workers, said Yoserizal Zein, the spokesman of Riau provincial administration.