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