RI requests better conditions for migrant workers abroad

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Jupriadi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Makassar

In a bid to increase its bargaining power with Malaysia over the labor issue, Indonesia has asked for welfare guarantees for those of its workers employed legally in the neighboring country.

Coordinating Minister for Social Welfare Jusuf Kalla said on Wednesday that the government would establish welfare benchmarks before sending workers to Malaysia.

"We will set benchmarks for workers' welfare, including salaries. If the standards are not met, we'd be better off pulling out our workers," Yusuf said after a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"We have decided to take the offensive in handling the migrant worker issue as the workers are not the problem but rather the solution (to unemployment). While there may indeed be some problems in sending them, they have nevertheless helped the nation by reducing unemployment, so they deserve to be treated properly."

He said that during bilateral talks on the labor issue held on Sept. 25 in Kinabalu City, the Indonesian government would ask Malaysian companies wishing to employ Indonesians to comply with the minimum requirements.

The government would also propose improvements in the workers' well-being, particularly regarding housing and education for the workers' children.

Both countries are expected to approve a Memorandum of Understanding on migrant workers on that date after having failed to reach an agreement during the summit between President Megawati and Malaysian President Mahathir Mohamad in July, just before Kuala Lumpur put its stringent new Immigration Act into effect.

An exodus of hundreds of thousands of Indonesian undocumented workers followed. Most of them streamed into Nunukan, which borders the Malaysian state of Sabah, sparking a human tragedy as the returning workers lacked food and shelter. Over 70 people died from various diseases during the exodus.

The government has come under fire for its sluggishness in addressing the issue, especially given the fact that Malaysia had announced its plan to enforce the new Immigration Act early this year. The government is also widely considered as having been tardy in helping the deported workers.

On Tuesday, Malaysia announced its approval of 500,000 work permits for its construction sector, which has been crippled following the mass exodus. Most of the jobs in the sector were formerly filled by Indonesian workers.

Previously, Malaysia had restricted Indonesians to working as domestic helpers and in the plantation sectors.

In Makassar, the South Sulawesi manpower and transmigration office announced a moratorium on labor exports to Malaysia, pending the results of bilateral talks between Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur later this month.

Deputy chief of the office, Syahrir Tadjuddin, told The Jakarta Post the move had been made at the request of Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea, who listed South Sulawesi as being among the eight provinces banned from sending workers to Malaysia.

"We decided to stop labor exports indefinitely to prevent any problems the workers may face in the future," Syahrir said.

Migrant workers hailing from the province accounted for 140,000 of the some 400,000 Indonesian undocumented workers in Malaysia. About 40,000 South Sulawesi workers have returned home, while the rest have already returned to Malaysia or are in the process of doing so.

There are about 20 labor export companies operating in South Sulawesi.