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igrant Care, a non-governmental organization (NGO) promoting rights of Indonesian migrant workers abroad, said that 32 migrant workers were on death row, while hundreds of others could face the death penalty, a plight that it blamed on government inaction.

The NGO found that of the 32 migrant workers on death row, 17 were in Malaysia, nine in China, and five in Saudi Arabia.

A further 417 migrant workers could also face the death penalty: 348 in Malaysia, 45 in Saudi Arabia, 22 in China, and two in Singapore.

“These people will surely lose their lives if the Indonesian government fails to show strong political will to defend their rights,” Migrant Care executive director Anis Hidayah told The Jakarta Post.

In 2011, Migrant Care recorded that 14,074 Indonesian migrant workers were not paid by their employers.

It also recorded that 3,070 workers suffered from physical abuse while another 1,234 were sexually abused. Some 1,203 workers died.

Anis said the task force set up by the government had failed to prevent abuses.

The Migrant Worker Taskforce was set up in July this year following a directive from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to provide legal assistance to migrant workers facing the death penalty in Saudi Arabia.

Anis said the President should have directly engaged in a diplomatic effort to bring the workers home.

“The ad-hoc institution is an indication that something is wrong with government agencies tasked to protect the rights of our workers and it shows how irresponsible they are.”

Anis said things could change if the government signed and ratified the International Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers.

The convention orders countries of origin, transit and destination, relevant regional and international organizations, the private sector and civil society to promote an environment that prevents and addresses violence and discrimination against female migrant workers.

But adoption of the convention is only the first step.

“Governmental officials must first change their attitude in treating migrant workers only as cash cows that benefit the country,” she said.

Fellow activist Sulistri of the Confederation of Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union said that the government campaign to promote Indonesia as the source for “cheap labor” has also hampered the way for defending the rights of workers overseas.

“The ratification of the convention would also have domestic impacts such as higher salaries and fixed working hours for domestic workers,” she said.

As part of its campaign to promote Indonesia as a source of cheap labor, the Indonesian government officially lifted its two-year moratorium on sending migrant workers to Malaysia earlier this month.

With the lifting of the moratorium, the country will start sending more immigrant workers to Malaysia starting in March of next year.

Activists believe that violations against Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia will remain high even though both governments had agreed on a resolution, including regulations allowing workers to hold their passports, mandatory one-day off per week and matters relating to workers’ salaries. (msa)