RI to raise migrant worker issue in high-level talks with Malaysia

RI to raise migrant worker issue in high-level talks with Malaysia

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri would raise the issue of
Indonesians illegally working in Malaysia during talks with
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Aug. 7 and Aug. 8 in
Bali, Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said on Tuesday.

"During the planned bilateral talks, we will raise the issue
of Indonesian workers as part of the main agenda," Hassan said.

The minister said the meeting was a follow on from a meeting
between the two leaders last August.

The meeting was scheduled for February but it was postponed
due to the two leaders' heavy work commitments.

Malaysian authorities have given illegal Indonesian workers
till July, 31, 2002 to return home or be charged under tough new
immigration laws.

The law threatens caning, three-month jail sentences and
10,000 Malaysian ringgit fines for those without the necessary
immigration documents. Malaysians who employ illegal migrants can
also be jailed for three months and fined 5,000 ringgits.

Malaysia toughened its laws following violence by Indonesian
workers at a textile company in Seremban, near Kuala Lumpur on
Jan. 17, 2002. Some 15 Indonesian workers were held responsible
for the incident.

Last October, a riot involving illegal immigrants from
Indonesia and Bangladesh erupted in a detention camp in Johor
Bahru in response to their arrest by Malaysian authorities.

Separately, Marty Natalegawa, spokesman for the Foreign
Affairs Ministry, said tens of thousands of illegal Indonesian
migrants were facing stern penalties as they had no identity
cards nor the required immigration documents to stay and work in
Malaysia.

However, according to The Jakarta Post's data, the number of
illegal Indonesian workers in Malaysia has reached hundreds of
thousands.

Many consider the issue a new factor straining the two
countries's bilateral ties.

The new laws were revealed by the Malaysian government months
ago, but so far the Indonesian government is yet to repatriate
its citizens.

From March to July, Indonesia's representative office in
Kinibalu managed to repatriate about 25,000 illegal workers who
were willing and able to pay for their journey home.

"The financial problems have hampered the repatriation of the
rest of the Indonesian workers and we have had to discuss the
issue with Malaysia to share the cost of the repatriation," Marty
said.

He said the government had ordered the Indonesian Embassy in
Kuala Lumpur to call on illegal Indonesian immigrants to leave
the country before the new laws took effect.

"We are aware of the new immigration act and we respect
Malaysian regulations and have tried to inform Indonesian
citizens in that country," he said.

Marty said during the upcoming bilateral talks Indonesia would
propose to amend the bilateral agreement on the workers status,
attempting to ensure all workers entered Malaysia legally.

The deadline for the new immigration act also creates concern
for people living on the border of the two countries as most of
their economic activities came from Malaysia.

The chairman of the Social Economic Team of Indonesia-Malaysia
in West Kalimantan (Sosek Malindo), Eka Kawirayu, urged both
governments to immediately resolve the issue.

In the Sosek meeting in Serawak, Malaysia, Eka pleaded with
the Malaysian government to renegotiate the implementation of the
new immigration act.

"This is a very important issue and has to be handled
immediately," Antara quoted him as saying.