Malaysia defends its stance on Indonesian job seekers
Yogita Tahilramani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Malaysia's introduction of a "hire Indonesian last" policy, stating that Indonesians will be hired only as maids or plantation workers, is not about discrimination against Indonesian workers, a Malaysian envoy says.
"To us... what is valid is that on Jan. 17 a riot occurred, which was instigated mostly by Indonesian workers and which got grossly out of hand. That acted like a catalyst for us," Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia Rastam Mohd Isa told reporters at the Malaysian Embassy on Monday.
"Malaysians have themselves never conducted or behaved in that manner on Malaysian soil. It was shocking."
Rastam was referring to a violent protest over drug testing in the Nilai industrial estate in Negeri Sembilan state, on Jan. 17.
Rastam further said that he had no wish to comment on the high rate of criminal acts and "gross violations committed by Indonesians" in Malaysia, which reportedly included violent thefts, rapes, murders and extortion.
"It is not because Malaysia finds Indonesian workers particularly frightening or a threat to Malaysia... our government believes that more job opportunities should be given to more deserving Malaysians," Rastam said.
Rastam reiterated that under the new Malaysian labor policy on reducing the number of foreign workers in Malaysia, Indonesian workers, except those who were not maids or plantation workers, would be replaced by workers from other nations.
"Once an Indonesian worker's work permit expires... and if the person is not a maid or a plantation worker, the person will be sent home," Rastam said.
Official data from the Malaysian Embassy states that currently more than 769,000 legal foreign workers reside in Malaysia, of which nearly 567,000 were Indonesians.
Rastam said that it was considering replacing Indonesian workers with anyone from any country other than Indonesia, including Turksmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Pakistan, Bangladesh and India.
Rastam's comments came in the wake of sharp criticism by the Malaysian government towards the "loutish" behavior of Indonesians working in Malaysia, which reportedly included attacking and wounding co-workers, employers, compatriots and police officers.
Former manpower minister Bomer Pasaribu earlier urged President Megawati Soekarnoputri to speak with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to address the problems.
"President Megawati should address the matter personally with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad because the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Indonesian workers are at stake ... what will their families eat, when they come back to Indonesia without jobs?" Bomer asked.
Malaysia's newspapers have also charged the rowdy workers with destroying property, razing lodgings and assaulting innocent people whenever they feel offended, with reasons ranging from unmet demands, solidarity with other workers or sectarian squabbles among themselves.
The newspapers have stated that Malaysian authorities, employers and members of the public have for too long known of criminal gangs among these workers who terrorize neighborhoods with their robbing and raping sprees.