Saudis offer reprieve for Indonesian overstayers

JAKARTA (JP): The government announced yesterday that Indonesians who have overstayed their visas in Saudi Arabia will be allowed to leave the country and will not face punishment.

The Saudi Arabian authorities are allowing foreigners, who are in violation of their stay permits either by overstaying or by taking up employment illegally, to leave the country before they begin to enforce a stricter regulation with stiffer penalties.

Director General of Immigration Roni Sikap Sinuraya, who made the announcement in Jakarta yesterday, did not say how long the offer stands.

He told a press conference at his office that he did not know what punishment would be exacted by Riyadh for those who violate its immigration rules in the future, but did not rule out the possibility of caning.

Hundreds of thousands of Indonesians are now working in Saudi Arabia. While their departure was orderly, some of them have since changed employers in violation of their contracts, while others have remained there although their visas have expired. Some have even discarded their travel documents to avoid detection.

Sinuraya said there are now 507 Indonesians, most of them women, who are stranded in Saudi Arabia because they no longer have their travel documents and therefore cannot return to Indonesia. The immigration office plans to issue them new travel documents.

In his year-end press conference, Sinuraya also disclosed that his office issued 89,729 exit permits for Indonesian workers between January and September, most of them were bound for Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East.

Up to Dec. 26 the immigration office had issued 67,815 visas altogether, he said.

He also pointed out that four million foreigners have entered Indonesia taking advantage of the visa-free facility for short stays.

The immigration office also has on its list, 666 names of Indonesians who are barred from leaving the country. Of these, 17 were barred at the request of the justice minister, 60 at the request of the finance minister and 589 at the request of the attorney general.

Immigration also has a list of 1,588 foreigners who are barred from entering Indonesia. Of these, 1,192 of the bans were requested by the justice minister, 200 by the attorney general and 229 by the Armed Forces chief. (imn)