Migrant recruits up and leave

A total of 103 would-be migrant workers unexpectedly left the PT Megah Buana recruitment agency training shelter in Rawalumbu, Bekasi, tying up two female security guards on their way out.

The agency confirmed the en masse departure, which took place on Sunday afternoon. It is also not clear whether the agency reported the case to the police.

The firm's director Adlea said he did not know the would-be workers' reasons for leaving as there had been no problems between them and the agency.

He suspected the involvement of provocateurs in an incident designed to tarnish his agency's image.

The recruits were supposed to undergo training for household work before they were sent to Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.

Non-governmental organizations supporting migrant workers have frequently reported many recruitment agencies fail to provide training, nutritional meals and hygienic rooms for their recruits.

Driven by the lack of employment in rural areas, many women from villages have tried their luck by becoming housemaids in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait or other Middle Eastern countries. -- Antara