Govt Forms Task Force to Combat Migrant Workers' Illegal Placement in NTT
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22 November 2023 14:40 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Migrant Workers Protection Agency (BP2MI) inaugurated the Sikat Sindikat (Combating Syndicate) Task Force in NTT on Wednesday, November 22, 2023. There were 61 personnel in the task force to combat the illegal placement of Indonesian migrant workers.
"The new task force to prevent and combat the syndicate of Indonesian migrant workers' illegal placement has been inaugurated to thoroughly protect migrant workers as a form of moral stance and dedication," said the Main Secretary of BP2MI Renardi in Kupang, NTT, today.
According to Renardi, Indonesia is currently at war against syndicates that place migrant workers, most of whom are women, at risk.
"I emphasize that our country is currently in an emergency state of migrant workers' illegal placement. We are in a situation that was made to seem easy, where law enforcement is actively being weakened, and the government is believed to be hopeless in protecting [migrant workers]," Renardi said.
BP2MI reported that at this time, there are 4.8 million registered migrant workers. However, the agency's data also recorded at least 4.2 million migrant workers who have never been officially registered, with a 90 percent rate of illegal placement.
From 2020 to November 16, 2023, the agency recorded 115,506 problems with migrant workers. Out of these numbers, 2,225 Indonesian migrant workers have fallen victim to migrant worker-related crimes where BP2MI handled the return of their bodies to their families.
Meanwhile, data showed over that period, 3,496 Indonesian migrant workers fell sick and 1,828 were caught in legal problems and had to be deported.
The Head of Sikat Sindikat Task Force of BP2MI Dayan Blegur stated that the task force will oversee all of BP2MI's activities in combating the migrant workers' illegal placement syndicate.
"We are authorized to monitor which of [BP2MI] activities are not following the procedures as well as conducting preventive measures [such as] socialization," Dayan said.
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