It boils down to law enforcement

Yenny Wahid, The Star, Asia News Network, Selangor, Malaysia

Yanto wants to go home to Indonesia but his salary for the past four months has not been paid. He chooses to stay on in Damansara rather than return empty-handed.

When asked if he is aware of the risk of staying on in Malaysia as orang kosong -- the term for illegal workers from Indonesia, Yanto nods. To him, incarceration or whipping is a risk worth taking when hunger is the alternative.

Yanto is one of the hundreds of thousands of Indonesian illegal workers who decided to stay on. Going back with an empty pocket is not a choice as strangling debts await them.

Before leaving for Malaysia, Yanto had to borrow from a moneylender with the promise that all will be settled when he returns from his trip abroad.

Alas, the salary remained unpaid while the interest on the debts continued to grow.

Remaining in Malaysia had become a necessity even if he had to live without food.

Cramped and suffocating quarters shared with hundreds of fellow workers, and shortage of food and clean water are not enough to frighten Yanto from staying on to get what is owed to him.

Asked further if he was aware of his awkward position, having entered Malaysia illegally, Yanto said yes, but added: "The project leader was aware that we were illegals but he employed us anyhow. Why is it now that he suddenly refused to pay our salary?"

The problem of Indonesian illegal workers has been a thorn in the bilateral ties between Indonesia and Malaysia for more than a decade.

Numerous efforts had been tried to solve the problem -- from the exchange of notes to the signing of MoU between the two nations, the latest during the official visit by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Feb. 14.

The Malaysian Government, on the request of Indonesia, agreed to postpone for the third time the repatriation of illegal workers to March 1.

The problems pertaining to the illegal workers attract controversies. Populist pronouncements by leading figures and a seemingly biased media had sparked the nationalistic sentiments in both countries.

In Indonesia, the problem is viewed from a humanitarian perspective. The perceived heavy punishment meted out to Indonesian illegal workers who were caught is viewed to be too harsh. Whipping, heavy fines, detention camps said to be unfit for human habitation which caused the workers to fall sick and even die, have given reasons for the Indonesian public to sympathize with their countrymen working in Malaysia. The situation has been worsened following reports of employers not paying the salaries of these workers for months.

On the Malaysian side, fighting and criminal activities including robberies and even murders involving Indonesian workers had made them a threat to security. The workers are also accused of taking advantage of the social facilities meant for Malaysians.

Despite the negative perceptions, there is an understanding between the leaders of the two nations that the Indonesian workers would remain an integral part of the Malaysian economy. The colossal unemployment rate in Indonesia and the ready demand for Indonesian workers in Malaysia have made the issue a fait accompli.

Numerous efforts have been undertaken to find a humane solution based on the spirit of goodwill. The "one stop center" system, involving six institutions from both Indonesia and Malaysia to provide the Indonesian workers the necessary documents, is a breakthrough. Under this system, the center will manage all the necessary documents for workers planning to go to Malaysia. Such efforts by the leaders of the two countries should be commended and supported even though other solutions which are more practical, economical and realistic should continue to be pursued.

One short-term solution which could be undertaken is the process of legalizing Indonesian workers who are already in Malaysia, through the Indonesia embassy in Malaysia. This process will benefit most quarters as it is cheaper, simple and efficient.

For Malaysian industries, they will suffer huge losses from the time of the repatriation of the Indonesian workers to the time of their return (with proper documents). Some employers decided to hold back part of the wages of their Indonesian workers to ensure they returned to Malaysia. For the Malaysian Government, this scheme is far more cost-effective as they do not need to foot the cost of repatriation. For the Indonesia authorities, the solution is ideal as they will not have to suddenly face hundreds of thousands of jobless people.

There is, of course, a weakness to the scheme as it can turn into an incentive for Indonesian workers to enter Malaysia illegally with the hope to gain employment and at the same time apply for the working permit at the embassy.

Another possible solution is by according the amnesty not only to the illegal workers but also the employers. Such amnesty would stop the employers and industries from being defensive and ensure that they are not reluctant in settling the arrears of the wages of the workers.

These solutions, if unaccompanied by enforcement, will continue to produce unauthorized agents, recruiters and transporters who will exploit the loopholes in the laws of the two nations.

Yanto never planned to enter Malaysia illegally but his documents had gone missing, taken by the recruiter who brought him. This is where the firmness of leaders from both nations in dealing with those supplying or receiving the workers is vital.

The writer is the daughter of former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid and also the Director of the Wahid Institute in Jakarta.