More migrant workers deported

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Tue, 08/07/2007 12:48 PM

JAKARTA: Malaysia continues to deport illegal Indonesian workers through the Entikong checkpoint in West Kalimantan, with a total of some 900 people deported since the beginning of the year.

""Every month, Indonesian workers are being deported through the checkpoint,"" said Indonesia's consul general in Malaysia, Bambang Prionggo.

""Their number varies between 100 and 150 per month,"" he told Antara on Monday.

Workers were normally deported as a result of improper immigration documents.

According to Bambang these workers mostly entered Malaysia through unofficial channels with no work permits.

""They rely on a tourist visa that is only valid for a month,"" he said.

""The Malaysian authorities are strict toward foreigners who have no immigration documents.""

Some 220,000 Indonesians currently work legally in Sarawak and are employed primarily as plantation workers or domestic staff.

This number accounts for just one quarter of the total estimated Indonesians working in Sarawak. --JP

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.