Ignored guest

Ignored guest

We read daily about human right issues in Indonesia and the
situation of Indonesian workers abroad. That care and protection
must be given is a good development. Unfortunately, the
Indonesian government as well as human rights organizations do
not give the same attention to their guests. Here is one example
of what happened some years ago.

On Oct. 1, 1992 at 2:30 a.m., I was robbed in my house by a
gang of 15 armed men wearing uniforms and jackets. Because I did
not keep a large amount of cash on me, they were not satisfied
with what they found and assumed there was more money and other
valuables present in the house. During the next one and a half
hours I was tortured with machetes, a piece of lumber and was
shot at twice by a colt .38, just to find out where I had hidden
the money.

First, they slashed my face with a machete, destroying my left
eye, cutting off my nose, and causing a fracture to my scalp.
They struck my head with a piece of lumber, damaging my right
ear. They also shot me twice in the leg.

One of my servants was able to escape and called the villagers
for help. Frightened of a confrontation, the robbers fled the
house within minutes. Actually, they could have finished me off
rather than leave me with the severe injuries and an enormous
loss of blood. They took electronic equipment, computers, a
briefcase with ID papers, which they thought contained money, and
other valuables.

I was rushed to Tangerang Hospital for emergency treatment,
but was refused admission due to the severity of my injuries.
They were not able to handle the emergency and suggested the
Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) in Jakarta. After many
trying efforts, I finally reached the RSCM hospital.

The government never contacted me to express their sympathy or
to offer any help, although I was working for a semigovernmental
organization. Renewing my ID and immigration papers was done
without any help. Instead, I was made to feel responsible for the
loss and I had to follow complicated procedures.

Some time later I managed to obtain a KIM/T stay permit which
would allow me a permanent stay for the price of US$6,500. When
it needed to be extended a year later, the visa did not exist
anymore and I had to go back to a temporary stay visa for which
again a sponsor was needed. As I work as a freelance consultant
for many government projects, a new visa had to be applied for
each new project. When no project was going on, I had to apply
for a business visa and fly each time to Singapore for an
extension.

To contribute to the development of Indonesia, which I learned
to love from my Javanese father, might be too idealistic. Going
back to the Netherlands without any savings is no alternative.

In spite of all these inconveniences, many pleasant things
have happened. I have adopted many children and given them
schooling and training in many fields. We built our own house.
Most of my foster children have now a wife and children and Idul
Fitri brings them all together.

CH. T. SAS

Tangerang, West Java