Labor Organizations Call for Better Protection of Migrant Workers

Jakarta (Antara) -- Several labor organizations have expressed hope that the current revision of law number 39 of 2004 regarding the placement and protection of Indonesian migrant workers abroad provides them better protection against any form of violation. "Only 10 articles of the law deal with protection, while the remaining are on the more business-oriented subject of placement," a lawyer of a labor organization, Wirdan Fauzi, said here on Thursday. The lawyer added that such business-oriented placement of Indonesian migrant workers abroad had made them vulnerable to human trafficking. At present, more than 6.5 million Indonesians work abroad and most of them, particularly those employed as domestic helpers, were exposed to the risks of violence, exploitation and modern slavery, he stated. According to Fauzi, this issue regarding migrant workers began since their recruitment saw the involvement of brokers, who resort to illegal means such as falsifying ages and identities, and also charge exorbitant fees. "The deliberation on the revision of the law at the parliament has shed some light on the migrant worker problem. Unfortunately, the House of Representatives (DPR) for the 2009-2014 period has not come to a decision on it," he noted. (*)