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For migrants, letter of law not always guarantee of protection

Ready to serve: Thousands of prospective and former migrant workers celebrate the 2019 Happy Migrant Day at the Malang Division II Army Strategic Command (Kostrad) base in East Java on Dec

Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Tue, December 31, 2019

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For migrants, letter of law not always guarantee of protection

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eady to serve: Thousands of prospective and former migrant workers celebrate the 2019 Happy Migrant Day at the Malang Division II Army Strategic Command (Kostrad) base in East Java on Dec. 18. The event was held to commemorate an agreement between the Manpower Ministry, the Defense Ministry and the Tourism Ministry that acknowledges migrant workers’ contribution to the economy and designates them as Indonesian “brand ambassadors” overseas. (JP/Aman Rochman)

The government issued Law No. 18/2017 as a new umbrella agreement for labor rights and protections two years ago in November, amending the previous 2004 Labor Law that activists deemed obsolete and incompatible with the current needs of Indonesian workers.

Critics, however, are doubtful that the body of law has been fully optimized to ensure the safety of thousands of Indonesian migrants working overseas, as the government is missing a deadline to complete the regulatory framework within two years, as mandated in Article 90 of the Labor Law.

Jakarta must take responsibility for Indonesian workers’ vulnerability overseas, said Wahyu Soesilo, the executive director of the Migrant Care labor rights advocacy group.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo recently announced plans to revamp the entire regulatory framework for the labor industry, which is to be simplified in a highly anticipated omnibus bill on manpower.

The inclusion of the 2017 law in the upcoming omnibus bill was in and of itself a “challenge” to the state’s commitment to migrant protections, Wahyu said, as it could potentially negate the work and consideration put into the Labor Law amendment, which would have given migrant workers more protection than previously conferred.

“Law No. 18/2017 would be nothing more than a short-lived piece of paper that failed to see any implementation,” he said in a statement to The Jakarta Post on Friday.

He said the scope of existing regulations was still too limited and needed to be strengthened by more comprehensive regulations. Even then, the government needs to consider decentralizing the management of the migrant labor industry, which requires local administrations to be involved.

The ominbus bill is expected to further simplify the legal framework, from the initial 28 regulations recommended in the 2017 law to just 13 that comprise three government regulations, five ministerial regulations, two presidential regulations and three agency-level regulations.

Tatang Razak, the acting head of the Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (BNP2TKI), said on Monday that all of these regulations would be drafted and enacted in 2020. He also hinted that the agency would shift its focus to sending more skilled workers overseas.

Greater commitment by the state is required to ensure the well-being of Indonesian workers overseas, as more and more people depart for other countries in search of better work opportunities and high remittances.

Between July and September this year, more than 67,900 new migrant workers left the country to work in more than 25 countries, mostly seeking jobs as domestic help.

The number of domestic workers reached a total of 80,762 people this year and it still tops the list of preferred professions for Indonesian migrant workers, surpassing caregivers, operators and construction workers.

Without adequate protections, Indonesian migrant workers get into all sorts of trouble overseas.

The Foreign Ministry’s director for overseas citizen protection, Judha Nugraha, said the paramount issue faced by Indonesian migrant workers to date was the lack of awareness of the prevailing laws and customs overseas.

“[It] causes so many problems,” he told journalists at the ministry’s complex on Friday, noting that most Indonesian laborers are embroiled in immigration troubles. He cited undocumented workers and overstayers as some of the most common problems that occur.

In Malaysia — home to about 2 million Indonesians, the largest diaspora community in the world — there are several high-profile cases that require greater attention from the government, Wahyu said.

“The deaths of Tamam and Ngatiyai, for instance, were ironic considering the Foreign Ministry has designated citizen protection as a foreign policy priority,” Wahyu said.

Tamam Arsyad, 66, collapsed in front of the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 31 while waiting in line to apply for a passport renewal. Similarly, 57-year-old Ngatiyai collapsed in front of the same embassy on Nov. 12.

Both were confirmed to have suffered from chronic heart problems and diabetes prior to their deaths, underscoring the lack of protections and oversight for health and labor placement.

In December, the BNP2TKI branch in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara recorded that at least 116 workers died in Malaysia throughout the year — most of whom were working illegally.

“The main point is to ensure safe migration [based on the 2017 law],” Judha said.

According to the BNP2TKI, during the third quarter of this year, at least 72 cases of overstaying workers have been recorded.

The agency has settled 3,380 cases involving Indonesian migrant workers, from a total of 5,108 cases. The number of cases increased from 4,696 last year.

Most cases involve overstayers (805), followed by cases of unpaid salary (658), deaths (343) and termination of work (258). The reports mainly originate from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Taiwan, Jordan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Qatar and Peru. This year, the agency repatriated a total of 8,072 troubled workers. (tjs)

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