"International Conference on Anti-Human Trafficking, Kolkatta, India, 25-26 Nov 2017"

This is not Full Paper. Full Paper will be published by Mary Ward Social Centre.

International Conference on Anti Human Trafficking Initiatives: Theory to Practice

Kolkata, India, 25th-26th November 2017

"Inter-Organisations System to Anticipate Indonesian Migrant Workers to be Misused in Middle East and Asian Countries"

Jeanne Francoise[1], I Wayan Midhio[2], Triyoga Budi Prasetyo[3]

 

(mrfc_jen@yahoo.com , midhio_2003_iwayan@yahoo.com , tri_yoga_budi@yahoo.co.id)

 

Indonesia Defense University

Abstract

This paper that would be presented in International Conference on Anti Human Trafficking Initiatives: Theory to Practice, Kolkata, India, 25th-26th November 2017, proposes a multi-track diplomacy to prevent and anticipate the misuse of Indonesian migrant workers (Tenaga Kerja Indonesia/ TKI) that have been working in Middle East and Asian countries since Indonesia applies Law No.39 Year 2004 about the TKI management, Law of Anti-Human-Trafficking No.21 Year 2007, and also Law No.5 Year 1999 (supplemented with Presidential Regulation No.88 Year 2002) to ratify UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime.

Those laws show that das sollen, Indonesia has rule of law to protect TKI, but das sein, TKI nowadays are being regarded as real slave, not a humanbeing. They are being raped, trafficked, beaten, not paid, and other worse cases in Middle East and Asian countries that absorb many TKI as domestic workers or nurses.

Based on the truth spoken in the news and researcher of Migrant Care, at least there are 13.318 TKI being raped or being trapped to be prostitutes in the year of 2010. In the year of 2013, United Nations said that Indonesia is the second largest country with the large numbers of human trafficking issues. TKI cases is the one who gives largest contribution for human trafficking system in Indonesia.

Realizing with that condition, I as scholar want this paper to be an eye opener to all international stakeholders to prevent and anticipate the devil circle of TKI false system. To analyze the problem, this paper use qualitative method based on academic, journal, research, legal reports concerning issues of TKI in Middle East and Asian countries and to propose multi-track diplomacy, this paper uses the theory of Joseph Stiglitz about modern economy, includes the analysis of poverty of Indonesia that maybe one of highest factor the existence of TKI. Keywords: Indonesia, TKI, poverty, modern economy, human trafficking, migrant workers

Introduction

Indonesian migrant workers are well-known to be mistreated in Middle East and Asian countries. They are raped, beaten, underpaid, even killed. We are known as "the nation of babu"[4] instead. Indonesian who is travelling to Saudi Arabia or Malaysia are being underestimated as migrant workers, not professional migrant workers, but migrant workers that can be owned as the patron likes to do for them. Even in Malaysia, Indonesians being called as "indon", an impolite word that constructed from the mindset of the society that Indonesians are "rest of the world", or "the country of migrant workers". Well this is not an academic prejudice, but it happens until now.

The habit of having pembantu[5] is also part of Indonesian culture. It is popular that a house has a domicile worker that coming from villages, with the payment of 1.000.000 Indonesian Rupiahs[6]. Sometime they are also living in the house, sometime they just go in the morning and return home in the evening.

The profession of being a domicile worker is a choice for villagers people, especially who do not have sufficient education to apply in normal companies. Poverty and lack of education that creates this devil chain to apply as migrant workers abroad, particularty in Saudi Arabia or Malaysia.

The opportunity of choosing migrant workers distributors are mostly coming from their families or relatives whose part of their families are already working in foreign countries. In come cases while they are coming back, they remain poor and bring children from their patrons. The children face look like Arabic face and they are not mingled with other children. Other problems are coming, such as divorce from their previous husband and the children being bullied by the society as "children of TKW[7]". The migrant workers are still poor and now single parent. How hard life they are facing to.

    

[1] Jeanne Francoise is a researcher in Indonesia Defense University.

   [2] Lieutenant General I Wayan Midhio, M.Phil, Ph.D is Rector of Indonesia Defense University.

   [3] Lieutenant Colonel Infantry Triyoga Budi Prasetyo, Ph.D is lecturer in Assymetric Warfare Postgraduate Study Programme, Indonesia Defense University.

   [4] Babu is Indonesian slang word; means somebody who has patron.

   [5] Pembantu means domicile worker who work at home to help for cooking, gardening, baby sitting, washing, or cleaning the house.

   [6] 1 USD = about 14.000 Rupiah.

   [7] Tenaga Kerja Wanita means female migrant workers.