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House leadership decision on domestic worker protection bill faces backlash
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A couple on a motorcycle drives past a mural in Yogyakarta. The mural demands for the government and the House of Representatives to resume deliberations on the long-stalled domestic worker protection bill. (Antara/Andreas Fitri Atmoko)
H
ouse of Representatives Speaker Puan Maharani of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has come under fire for using an outdated conclusion as a reason not to kick-start efforts to introduce a much-needed new legislation to better protect domestic workers.
Lawmakers will return from recess on Tuesday, raising speculation whether this meant that the long-awaited domestic worker protection bill would once again be put on the back burner.
Puan on Thursday cited a conclusion of the House leadership's meeting two years ago that agreed not to press ahead with deliberating the bill as a reason. She said the meeting in August 2021 decided not to bring the bill to a House Steering Committee (Bamus) meeting for an endorsement before a plenary session could decide whether or not to start deliberating the bill.
“At that time, [the House leadership meeting concluded that] the time was not right to schedule a Bamus meeting [that would decide whether or not to bring the bill to a plenary meeting] and the planned bill needed further reading," Puan said in a statement.
Civil groups called Puan’s argument irrelevant as the meeting was made two years ago. They urged the House leadership to immediately bring the bill to the plenary session to seek endorsement as the House initiative, a first step necessary to start deliberation of the bill.
“For the past three years, Puan has held [the bill] back,” Eva Kusuma Sundari, director of the Sarinah Institute and coordinator of the coalition of civil groups advocating for domestic worker protection, told journalists on Friday.
“This [the coming sitting session this week] actually offers an opportunity to push [for deliberation]. She doesn't have to use arguments no longer relevant because it was made in 2021,” said Eva who was also a former PDI-P lawmaker.
