Its ambassador, Hermono hoped that key representatives from Putrajaya would show up at the committee meeting on the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Indonesian maids if they genuinely wanted to resolve the labour shortage here, China Press reported.
“We hope the relevant departments and agencies will attend it together, or we will have to take other measures. This could even mean no more exporting labour into Malaysia.
“This MoU has no meaning (if the MOS is not abolished),” he was quoted as saying by the daily.
“If our workers are not protected, we would not want to send our maids here, because we would not know where our citizens end up working or what are the terms of their contracts.”
On July 13, Hermono said the republic had imposed a temporary freeze on all Indonesian workers entering Malaysia.
He said it was due to the Malaysian immigration department’s continued use of the MOS to facilitate the recruitment of Indonesian maids instead of the One Channel System as agreed in the MoU which was signed in April between the two countries.
Under the MOS, Indonesian workers can enter the country using a tourist visa before applying for a work permit. Jakarta wants this practice to end due to the risk of forced labour that their citizens face.
Meanwhile, Hermono said the MoU stipulated that maids will need to be trained first before entering Malaysia, in order to provide adequately-skilled domestic workers.
He added that the MOS was flawed in that applicants did not have to be trained.
“I know that the MOS is much faster and the fees will be cheaper because they may not need any training.
“However, there is a risk that employers might get unskilled maids, which could then lead to the problem of maids running away,” he said.
Hermono warned that if cases of maid abuse in Malaysia did not improve, it could lead to demonstrations in his home country and the souring of ties between both nations.
He said Indonesia was already working on phasing out sending maids abroad, especially to “problematic countries” like Malaysia and those in the Middle East.
He added that there was no timeline yet as to when his government planned to completely stop sending maids abroad.
Since 2015, Indonesia has banned sending its citizens as domestic workers to 21 countries in the Middle East.
Hermono explained that he chose to take a bold and outspoken stand on the issue since his appointment as ambassador means he will not stay silent and watch his fellow citizens get abused.
“Actually, we receive complaints on a daily basis. This includes cases of our people being left on the streets, being dragged out of the house and dumped on the road.
“Those who do such things include those who are educated and are from wealthy families. Those who have graduated from Harvard and own big houses, they treat our people like this. How can I stay silent?”