Workers report manpower agency

Workers report manpower agency

BATAM, Riau Islands: Fed up with waiting to be sent to
Malaysia as promised by a manpower agency, some 13 women left the
agency's shelter in Tanjung Pinang, Riau Islands, a police
officer said on Tuesday.

Tanjung Pinang Police chief of criminal investigations Adj.
Comr. Herry Heriawan told The Jakarta Post by phone on Tuesday
the 13 workers left the shelter on Saturday night and then hid
for a day in nearby forested area before 11 of them reported to
the police station.

Herry said the workers had been waiting at the shelter for
three months.

"They (the workers) said they were not given enough food at
the shelter, which was in a poor state. They felt depressed.
They're still at the station and we'll check their statements
against that of the shelter's owner," Herry said.

The women are aged between 23 and 30 years old. Six of them
are from East Java, four from West Java and one from Lampung.

However, he could not say whether the police would arrest the
shelter's owner. "We'll investigate the case from both sides,
whether it's true the manpower agency deceived them," he said. --
JP