Garda Prabowo Praises Malaysia FWCMS System Rejection
Jakarta (ANTARA) — Garda Prabowo has welcomed the decision by the Ministry of Migrant Worker Protection (KP2MI) to reject a proposal to use a Malaysian private company’s FWCMS system for placing Indonesian migrant workers (PMI).
Amri Piliang, head of the Legal and Human Rights Department of Garda Prabowo’s National Coordinating Council, said in Jakarta on Tuesday that the decision was important for safeguarding Indonesia’s sovereignty in the governance of migrant worker placements.
“Indonesia’s position is the right one as part of the state’s efforts to safeguard the sovereignty of the Republic of Indonesia. Memorandums of understanding between countries can remain in force for years and continue, while contracts with service providers can expire, be replaced or be terminated at any time,” Amri said.
The proposal to use the Foreign Worker Centralized Management System (FWCMS) was discussed at the fifth Indonesia–Malaysia Joint Working Group (JWG) meeting in Bandung, West Java, on 20–21 October. The system covers the registration of prospective domestic workers, health checks and the ratification of employment contracts by the Indonesian Embassy (KBRI).
However, Amri said recruitment agency activities and the registration of prospective workers in Indonesia must comply with national law, including Law No. 18 of 2017 on the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers and Law No. 27 of 2022 on Personal Data Protection.
“Companies processing Indonesian citizens’ data in Indonesia must comply with those rules, whatever the terms of their contract with Kuala Lumpur. The Indonesian Embassy itself operates under the Vienna Convention, and the receiving country has no authority to determine the working tools of another country’s embassy,” he said.
Amri explained that Malaysia could make FWCMS a requirement for visa applications, as this falls within its authority. However, the process of placing Indonesian migrant workers from Indonesia must still follow the laws and procedures in force in Indonesia.
He cited Articles 5 and 13 of Law No. 18 of 2017, which set out the requirements for prospective Indonesian migrant workers and the documents needed for placement. He said the process should also go through the Computerised System for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (SISKOP2MI).
He said progress on this approach had begun to emerge in technical discussions following the Bandung meeting. At a Joint Technical Meeting to draft a memorandum of understanding for the formal sector, the two countries discussed a recruitment process linking their respective government systems.
“Contracts will still be ratified by Indonesian representatives before migrant workers depart,” he said.
Amri stressed that agreements on migrant worker placement should rely on the systems of both governments to ensure procedural certainty, personal data protection and the sovereignty of each country.