When workers have to use black magic to protect their livelihoods

When workers have to use black magic to protect their livelihoods

Kornelius Purba, Jakarta

In Hong Kong, Anna Kurnia, an Indonesian maid, lost her job
after her employer found she planned to use black magic
in a desperate attempt to stop the family from sacking her. The
employers opened a small package sent by Anna's husband from
Indonesia, containing dried flowers and a note explaining how a
simple spell would ensure the family would not dismiss her.

The Agence Presse-France quoted Anna's husband saying in his
letter that putting the flowers in the family's drinks and
chanting a spell would make her employers become gentle and
submissive. After violating Anna's privacy and now in fear of
their wellbeing, the family sent her back to Indonesia.

Anna panicked after she found out her employers were not
satisfied with her services. She had gone to Hong Kong to find
work and income to feed her hungry family; she had nowhere to go
to ask for protection in Hong Kong and knew it was useless to
expect the Indonesian or Hong Kong governments' help. Black magic
seemed the only way to ensure she would still receive a few
hundred dollars for her hard work.

Meanwhile, a Human Rights Watch report states that thousands
of Indonesian maids in Malaysia have become victims of physical
and mental abuse, where they are forced to work 18 hours a day,
seven days a week. Commenting on this, Minister of Manpower and
Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea said,"The majority of (abuse) cases
found in Kuala Lumpur involve illegal workers and people who do
not have skills." What else can our workers can expect from such
a minister?

Whatever her real motive, the Philippines President Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo has set a great example for how a head of state
should act to protect her citizens. She is risking her close
alliance with U.S. President George W. Bush by withdrawing the
country's troops in Iraq in order to save the life of a single
Filipino truck driver.

While governments are obliged to protect their citizens, for
the meantime we cannot hope for that much protection from our
government. Not only does the government fail to defend the
people here, it even indulges in violence against them -- what is
known as state terrorism. Former dictator president Soeharto
could easily counter arguments that require him to take all the
blame for acts of state terror.

"Don't you think my successors have also obediently followed
my lead," he might say.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri on Thursday boasted to the
country's top prosecutors that her government's achievements in
protecting the nation from terrorists deserved to be listed in
the Guiness Book of World Records.

It is true she deserves praise for her determination to bring
the country's terrorists to justice. She encouraged police and
prosecutors to try and jail the terrorists who killed hundreds of
innocent people in Bali in 2001 and who were responsible for the
attack on the JW Marriot Hotel a year later.

But why did she not also ask why Attorney General M.A. Rachman
was so incompetent in bringing to court those who had stolen from
the state coffers? It is encouraging to see the progress the
police have achieved after their separation from the military.
But it is also important for Megawati to ask the police why many
people still complain about police-run extortion rackets and
other forms of widespread police corruption.

However, it is not impossible her rival in the Sept. 20
presidential runoff, Gen. (ret) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, will
claim he has the right to a share of the praise because of his
work as the chief security minister until March this year.

While it is important to condemn acts of terrorism and remove
the sources of the threat, the next question, however, is how to
eradicate the roots of terrorism, including poverty and
injustice?

With the eighth anniversary of the July 27 tragedy only few
days ahead, it is perhaps appropriate to ask a question: "What
has Megawati done to bring to justice the perpetrators
responsible for the death and misery of her supporters, who were
tortured to death simply because they defended their leader,
Megawati?"

Perhaps Megawati will continue to ignore the deaths of her
supporters in 1996. It seems a change in her attitude will only
come if her advisors are able to persuade her a sudden display of
sympathy to the victims would help her to win more votes in the
Sept. 20 runoff.

A priest was shot to death in Poso on Sunday, while she was
preaching during a Sunday church service. While the Constitution
guarantees the freedom of religion, the state fails to protect
people from practicing their beliefs. Hundreds of churches have
been burned down in the past few years and more Christians and
other minority groups feel terrorized merely because of the
values they embrace.

Many Muslims, however, also feel they are only a majority in
this country in terms of quantity, and not quality. In the
economy, for instance, Muslims feel they are in the minority.
What has the state done to reduce the big discrepancy between the
rich (many often perceived as non-Muslims) and the poor?

Many Muslims also feel humiliated about the continuous reports
and allegations that most major terrorist acts are conducted by
Muslim criminals. Western countries slapped travel warnings on
Indonesia because of the terrorist attacks here.

The April 5 legislative election and the July 5 presidential
elections, however, prove that Indonesia is as civilized and
mature as industrialized countries in terms of its maturity in
democracy.

It is the people, not the government, who through
participating in peaceful and democratic elections, have proved
wrong the claim Indonesia is a breeding ground for terrorists.

Perhaps it is ridiculous to expect so much from the
government. Can Megawati protect the people when she is still not
sure whether she can protect her presidential seat?

While it may not be much of a protector, at least the
government has shown it is less willing to terrorize its own
people.

Kornelius Purba (purba@thejakartapost) is a staff writer for
The Jakarta Post.