Malaysia extends amnesty deadline for migrant workers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Malaysian government has extended the amnesty period for undocumented Indonesian migrant workers to return home from Nov. 14 to December, Indonesian Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Fahmi Idris said.

Fahmi said an agreement on the extension was reached during his meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.

"I just met with Malaysian Prime Minister Ahmad Badawi and he agreed ... to extend the amnesty period. However, he said he needed to consult with his Cabinet first on the technicalities," Fahmi told Antara.

Kuala Lumpur earlier announced an amnesty program to allow undocumented Indonesian migrants working in Malaysia to leave the country without sanction between Oct. 29 and Nov. 14. The amnesty was called to coincide with Idul Fitri, which falls on Nov. 15.

An estimated 400,000 Indonesian illegal migrant workers are expected to take advantage of the amnesty scheme, and several thousand returning workers have begun to arrive at designated entry points across the archipelago.

Fahmi said he and the Malaysian prime minister also discussed how to prevent Indonesians working illegally in Malaysia and improving the placement of Indonesian workers in Malaysia by employment agencies.

Malaysia has enacted tough punishments for illegal workers, including jail sentences of up to five years, fines of up to US$2,632 and caning for men below the age of 50.

Malaysians found employing illegal workers will also face jail sentences, fines or caning.

Fahmi said Badawi agreed to amend a memorandum of understanding on the placement of Indonesian workers in Malaysia signed by the two governments earlier this year. A meeting to discuss revisions to the memorandum is scheduled to be held sometime after Idul Fitri.

During meetings he held with migrant workers leaving Malaysia for Indonesia on Thursday, Fahmi received numerous complaints from the migrants who said they would not be able to afford to return to Malaysia.

One migrant told Fahmi he could not afford to pay the departure tax of Rp 1 million that Indonesian citizens are required to pay when leaving the country.

The chairman of the Indonesian Employee Agency Association, Djamal Aziz, who accompanied Fahmi during the meetings, told the migrants that his association was prepared to help them secure the necessary documents to work legally in Malaysia.

The government has set up shelters for returning workers at the seaports nearest the border with Malaysia.

About 22,000 of the returning workers are expected to be absorbed into the government's resettlement program and sent to less populated provinces in the country.

In Jakarta, State Minister for Women's Empowerment Meutia Hatta said her office would closely monitor the arrival of women migrant workers at Soekarno-Hatta airport, where extortion of returning migrant workers is common.

Most Indonesian migrant workers are women.