Stop human exports

Stop human exports

From Koran Tempo

The news carried by Koran Tempo labeling Indonesia as the
world's largest human exporter is interesting and surprising --
especially the quantity of this human traffic -- from 75,000 to 1
million citizens sent overseas a year, including women and
children as the most vulnerable groups.

This trade in humans has become a lucrative business for
entrepreneurs. One wonders whether these businesspeople ever
seriously consider the fate of the workers the send overseas or
do they convince themselves that these laborers will improve
their livelihoods abroad? It is likely they do neither.

This labor export phenomenon stems from the country's
significant population growth and is also partly due to the less-
than-successful implementation of family planning programs in
recent times. Consequently, a lot of workers lack the proper
skills to survive in the job market.

Nonetheless, unskilled job seekers as citizens of Indonesia
have the right to survive in their own country and should be
given the opportunity to try their luck at home; not be forced
into exporting their skills and end up being left neglected
overseas.

FENITA D.A.
West Java