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