Govt pushed to get tough on manpower agencies
Govt pushed to get tough on manpower agencies
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Legislators with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan) urged authorities on Monday to take legal action
against manpower agencies and state apparatus illegally
recruiting and sending workers overseas.
"Errant manpower agencies and state apparatus must be charged
under the Criminal Code," Rekso Herman told a press conference
here on Monday.
Rekso said the authorities could not use Ministry of Manpower
and Transmigration Decree No. 104 A/2002, for this purpose
because the maximum penalty for any offense was only an
administrative sanction.
The statement from the House's biggest faction, PDI Perjuangan
faction, came weeks after the nation was shocked by recent cases
of maltreatment of Indonesian workers in Saudi Arabia.
Fifteen workers returned home recently after experiencing
physical and psychological abuse in Saudi Arabia. They were
hospitalized upon their arrival at the Soekarno-Hatta
International Airport.
The House of Representatives leaders had called on the
government to temporarily stop the sending of workers abroad and
urged Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jakob Nuwa Wea to
resign due to his for inability to solve the problems.
Nearly 200,000 Indonesian workers fled Malaysia in August last
year after Kuala Lumpur cracked down on an estimated 600,000
illegal workers.
They were stranded in the East Kalimantan town of Nunukan,
near the border of Malaysia's Sabah state.
Fellow legislator Hadi Wasikun added that many violations took
place in the recruitment of workers from regions by the manpower
agencies.
He said that many manpower agencies had no training centers to
improve the skills of workers. The manpower agencies also offered
jobs to people without clear job descriptions.
"Also, I have received reports that the recruitment is
conducted by middlemen or brokers. The workers are housed in
buildings without proper sanitation," he said.
This, he said, of course caused the health of workers to
deteriorate prior to their departure abroad.
In a statement signed by faction chairman Tjahjo Kumolo and
secretary Panda Nababan, PDI Perjuangan faction suggested that
the foreign ministry and the manpower and transmigration ministry
enter into bilateral agreements with countries hiring Indonesians
to protect workers.
Regarding the bill on migrant worker protection, PDI
Perjuangan urged the government to immediately issue a government
regulation as the legal basis for the workers protection.
"Because, the deliberation of the bill on migrant workers
protection will take time," Wasikun added.