'We have to send unskilled workers homes'

Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso has vowed to prevent unskilled migrants from entering the city after the Idul Fitri celebrations. The Jakarta Post talked to some residents about the policy.

Tony Wibowo, 31, works for a manufacturing company in Meruya, West Jakarta. He lives with his family in Kedoya, also in West Jakarta.

Personally, I agree with Sutiyoso's policy of not allowing unskilled migrants to come here. They will only cause more problems for the city. Ubiquitous street children, beggars and thugs are just some examples of how people resorting to antisocial behavior when they cannot find a decent job.

I think that the informal sector in the city is already overcrowded. With its rapid development, Jakarta is in need of people with higher qualifications to fill skilled positions in businesses, rather than unskilled ones.

Pingkan, in her 20s, works as an English teacher for a private school on Jl. Dewi Sartika in East Jakarta. She resides in Jatibening, Bekasi.

That's a good policy. We have to stop the influx of unskilled migrants into the city. If necessary, we have to send back the unskilled migrants to their hometowns.

The administration must convince these migrants that living in their hometowns would be much better than staying here in poor living conditions.

It's true that their are relatively more jobs in Jakarta than in other regions of the country, but most of the jobs here require greater skills and expertise.

Unskilled people won't be able to meet such high standards and will end up jobless here. You can imagine how tough the requirements for jobs here are when even university graduates find it difficult to find employment.

With education of, let's say, up to senior high school level, what expertise and skills can we expect from these unskilled migrants?"

--The Jakarta Post