RI lobbies Malaysia on repatriation of workers

RI lobbies Malaysia on repatriation of workers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With just one day to go until Malaysia implements harsh
immigration laws, the country continues to repatriate hundreds of
thousands of Indonesians living illegally in Malaysia.

Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea told
The Jakarta Post by telephone here on Tuesday that three warships
-- KRI Teluk Lampung, KRI Teluk Kambai and KRI Teluk Ende -- had
been dispatched to transport tens of thousands of workers
stranded in Tawao, East Malaysia, with most of them already
arriving home.

"Until Aug. 10, the three ships are expected to transport
around 120,000 illegal workers who have decided to return home,
while the cases of the remaining 60,000 are expected to be solved
through intensive lobbying and bilateral cooperation with the
Malaysian authorities," the minister said.

The government has estimated the number of Indonesians living
illegally in Malaysia prior to the recent exodus at around
180,000 but many sides put the figure at between 380,000 and
480,000.

He said two of the three ships would transport the workers
from Tawao to Makassar, South Sulawesi, while the third ship
would travel from Johar to Belawan in North Sumatra and Dumai in
Riau. Malaysian authorities are also deploying several vessels to
help the repatriation mission.

"Of utmost importance is that the government has called on
illegal workers to return home and has called on Malaysian
authorities not to administer its new immigration law to all
those who have decided to return home," he said.

Nuwa Wea, however, regretted that many workers were unaware of
the new law and the government's call since they were living
sheltered lives on plantations and in residences.

Nuwa Wea said Ari Heriawan and Soeramsihono, two senior
officials at the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, had
been in Kuala Lumpur to urge the Malaysian authorities not to
enforce the law until Aug. 10 to give workers time to return
home.

Indonesia was set to include the labor issue in the agenda of
bilateral talks between President Megawati Soekarnoputri and
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad in Bali on Aug. 7, to
persuade Malaysia to accept workers trained in Indonesia and who
had the necessary documents.

The amnesty period that started in March will end on
Wednesday, and the new immigration law threatening caning, a jail
sentence or a fine for illegal immigrants is scheduled to take
effect as of Aug. 1. The law also threatens a jail sentence and
fines against Malaysians employing illegal foreign workers.

Malaysia drafted the law following a riot in Johar last
October and another riot near Kuala Lumpur in January that
involved Indonesian workers. Fifteen Indonesians who were found
guilty of inciting the last riot were sent to prison.

On Tuesday, some 30,000 illegal workers arrived in Belawan,
North Sumatra, and Dumai in Riau from the Malaysian peninsula and
in Makassar and Parepare from East Malaysia.

"The remaining workers stranded in Tawao, Nunukan (East
Kalimantan) and Entikong in West Kalimantan are expected to
arrive home on Wednesday," Sjahrir Tadjuddin, chief of the South
Sulawesi manpower and transmigration office, said.

He said 7,000 workers had arrived in South Sulawesi from Tawao
and Nunukan and more were expected on Wednesday.

Some of the workers used passenger ships at their own expense
to reach the province.

Meanwhile, the North Sumatra administrations threatened to
turn away illegal workers arriving at Medan's Belawan Port and
Tanjung Balai's Teluk Nibung Port if the central government did
not finance the workers' trip home to Java and West Nusa
Tenggara.

"We are only providing financial aid for illegal workers from
North Sumatra. We don't have the money for illegal workers from
other provinces. They are the responsibility of the central
government and the relevant provincial administrations," he said.