KUALA LUMPUR: Indonesia reported on Sunday that it had not yet sent the first batch of domestic workers to Malaysia as part of a new agreement since a ban on workers to the country was lifted in December. The Indonesian Embassy in Malaysia said that the maids who were reported to have arrived recently are “not part” of a new shipment of workers to Malaysia. In June 2009, Indonesia imposed a ban on sending its citizens to work as maids in Malaysia after numerous reports of abuse and mistreatment by employers. An Indonesian Embassy spokesman told the Sin Chew daily newspaper that it was not aware of the 29 maids who arrived in Malaysia, stressing that it had not issued “demand letters" or “job orders" for them. “We understand that these 29 maids came as the result of agreements between maid agencies and the Indonesian local government. They did not come to Malaysia through the Indonesian Manpower and Transmigration Ministry," she said on Saturday, adding that the Embassy is awaiting a response from the Ministry on this matter. She cited Indonesian media reports where Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said the country has yet to start sending maids to Malaysia. Malaysian Association of Employment Agencies (PIKAP) had said that the “first batch" of Indonesian maids will land at the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) in Sepang next Monday, and that Indonesian Embassy representatives are expected to be present. Still, despite the lifting of the ban, Indonesian activists have continued to demand an increase in security guarantees for domestic workers in Malaysia. Last month, activists called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to stop all diplomatic relations with Kuala Lumpur in protest of how the country is dealing with immigrants. The activists called on the government to demand protection of migrant workers. Migrant Care executive director Anis Hidayah said on Wednesday that Yudhoyono did not have to consider the serumpun (brotherhood). Instead, he needed to be tough. “Among the destination countries for migrant workers, Malaysia is the most unsafe for Indonesian workers as between 600 and 700 Indonesians die of various causes, including torture, shooting and exploitative acts by their employers," she said. Thaufiek Zulbahary of Solidaritas Perempuan, an NGO providing legal advocacy for female migrant workers, said the government should delay sending workers to Malaysia again until its government took steps, including establishing a legal framework, to protect them. Indonesia recently lifted the moratorium in labor supply, but Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar has repeatedly said the government would not send workers until the Malaysian government ensured their protection. Indonesian Migrant Workers' Association (ATKI) chairwoman Retno Dewi also condemned the shooting deaths of three Indonesian migrant workers in Negeri Sembilan, saying it was a serious rights violation. The activists also accused the Malaysian government of intimidating Malaysian human rights defender Irene Fernandez, the executive director of Tenaganita, who has long stood up for migrant workers. ** Alisha Hassan contributed to this report.
