Woman leaders blast sending of maids abroad

Woman leaders blast sending of maids abroad

JAKARTA (JP): Two prominent women have deplored the government's inability to stop the sending of young Indonesian women to work as domestic helpers abroad despite repeated pledges to phase out the practice.

Kuraisin Sumhadi, president of the International Council of Women, and Enny Busiri, chairperson of the Indonesian Women's Congress (Kowani), said that the menial jobs these women are doing abroad are "demeaning" and "harming Indonesian women's images".

Interviewed separately by the Antara news agency, Kuraisin and Enny expressed similar abhorrence over reports that many Indonesian women workers have been raped and abused by their employers in some countries, including Saudi Arabia.

"I am really concerned, because the welfare of these women working as servants abroad hasn't changed for the better," Kuraisin said.

She blamed the manpower supplier companies for the condition.

"We appreciate the government's drive to promote the welfare and dignity of women workers, but those who are directly involved in managing them are only human, with many flaws," she said.

Kuraisin said Kowani has long been opposed to the sending of women to work as maidservants abroad. "Many of the women are poorly educated and are unaware of their legal rights."

Enny said many of the workers are underqualified. "Take the housekeeper position, for instance, which usually pays more and provides better welfare," Enny said. "Many of our workers are trained to work as housemaids, but not as housekeepers."

Enny acknowledged that to immediately stop sending women workers abroad is not a practical solution, given the huge sums of foreign exchange at stake.

"We can't prohibit those women from seeking better jobs, it's their right, especially since Indonesia has not been able to create adequate employment opportunities for them," Enny said.

She said Kowani, which is the umbrella organization of some 70 women groups, called on labor suppliers to tighten their procedures in selecting and sending women workers, and ensure better protection and monitoring of the women.

Members of the Commission VI of the House of Representatives who recently visited Saudi Arabia said last week that as many as 1,500 Indonesian women workers in Saudi Arabia have been raped and abused. Some of them are pregnant.

Indonesia and Saudi officials have refuted the allegations, saying that while there are cases of abuse, the number is not as high as the House members suggest.

"Women all over the world face this dire condition," Kuraisin said. "Women in Western countries may fare a little better because they are more aware of their legal rights, so their employers are not free to mistreat them."

Kuraisin said Indonesian women workers are partly to blame for this condition because they insisted on going despite knowing the risk that it entailed.

Their poor educational background make them sitting ducks for people out to dupe them, she said.

"They knew that Saudi labor policies do not guarantee housemaids adequate protection, but they went there anyway," Kuraisin said. "We can't put all the blame on the Saudi Arabian government as we can't force them to change their laws." (swe)