Fate of migrant

Fate of migrant workers questioned

From Media Indonesia

In connection with media reports on the deportation of 19 Indonesian female migrant workers from Kuwait, I would like to pose a number of questions regarding various unexplained aspects of the issue.

The workers, jailed for possessing no passports, reported to the police that their employers had abused them and seized their wages and passports. How did the Kuwaitis respond to this? What was the attitude of the Indonesian Embassy upon hearing the workers' reports (after they were released from prison)? Did the embassy seek to have legal action taken against the Indonesian workers' employers and the police, or did it accuse the women of causing trouble?

Did the embassy investigate the manpower companies or their agents who were responsible for the women in Kuwait as well as in Indonesia? In reality, it appears that normally the embassy only becomes involved in these cases after stories about our women's suffering come to light in the media. And how should the Indonesian government, the Indonesian Council of Ulemas and the Ministry of Religious Affairs face up to the fact that fellow Muslims can freely torture and rape Indonesian women?

The saddest reality, however, is that the wages received by Indonesian migrant workers are almost half of those received by Filipinos, and are often subject to deductions and extortion in Indonesia by our own government's officials. I hope these questions will be aired in the media, and responses will be forthcoming from non-governmental organizations and the government.

ABDULLAH ZAIN Jakarta