Soeharto wants exact data on workers' repatriation

Soeharto wants exact data on workers' repatriation

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (JP): President Soeharto has ordered the
nation's envoy in Saudi Arabia to determine the exact number of
illegal Indonesian workers recently repatriated from the kingdom.

Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said over the weekend that
Soeharto was apparently confused by differences in figures
provided by Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief and ambassador
Zarkowi Soejoeti.

Latief told Soeharto the number was more than 24,000, about
6,000 more than the amount cited by Zarkowi, according to
Moerdiono.

"Soon after his arrival in Jeddah, Soeharto told the
ambassador to recheck because the difference is very big,"
Moerdiono said after accompanying Soeharto to visit the tomb of
Prophet Muhammad in Medina.

Soeharto and his family visited Saudi Arabia from Wednesday to
Friday to perform umrah, the Moslem minor pilgrimage, and arrived
back in Jakarta Saturday afternoon.

"The President also instructed the ambassador and his staff to
give their best services and protection to the workers so that
they could concentrate to their jobs," the minister said.

After meeting with Soeharto earlier this month, Latief
announced that 24,357 illegal workers had been airlifted from
Saudi Arabia in a repatriation program lasting almost a month.

The operation, involving flag carrier Garuda and Air Force
planes, was conducted after Saudi Arabia ended a three-month
amnesty and began expelling illegal foreign workers.

The airlift was financed by the state workers' insurance
company, PT Jamsostek, with each worker's repatriation costing
about US$300 in airfare.

Latief also disclosed at the time that 359 Indonesians were
imprisoned in the country, a statement flatly rejected on Friday
by an Indonesian diplomat dealing with the matter.

"We have checked with local authorities and the number is only
40 people," the diplomat, speaking on the condition of anonymity,
told The Jakarta Post in Medina.

An Indonesian worker, Soleha Anam Kadiran, was executed in
Mecca in September after being found guilty of killing her male
employer. She alleged he had tried to sexually assault her.

"They are easy targets for sexual abuse or other harassment
because most of our workers are women who work as housemaids,"
the diplomat said.

The Indonesian presence is felt in Saudi cities. In Jeddah,
Indonesians are regarded by local traders as among their best
customers.

Many shop owners and attendants can speak Indonesian fluently
although they have never been to Indonesia or formally studied
the language.

"Indonesian people are our best customers," said Muhammad
Abdullah, a tenant in the Balad shopping center in Jeddah.

However, Indonesian servants can also be seen in shopping
centers walking behind their Saudi Arabian employers.

"The repatriation program must be seen as a lesson for ... the
future," Moerdiono quoted Soeharto as saying. (prb)