Indonesian consulate takes steps to protect migrant rights

Tri Tharyat

The Indonesian consulate in Hong Kong and Macau said that it is working closely with the city’s Labour Affairs Bureau to address local migrant groups’ call for rights protection.

Compared to neighboring Hong Kong, where foreign domestic workers are entitled to various benefits under the Employment Ordinance, the MSAR lacks protection – such as a minimum wage law – for these workers.

Tri Tharyat, consul general of the Indonesian Consulate in Hong Kong and Macau, said the matter is also being assessed by Indonesian authorities.

Speaking on the sidelines of a press conference yesterday, Tharyat said, “we need to work more and more […] This is one of the issues that my authorities back in Indonesia will determine […] whether Macau is considered [to have] enough protection for our workers.”

To date, Indonesia has blacklisted 15 countries and regions – all in the Middle East – for inadequate protection of Indonesian migrant workers.

“We are still reviewing the current status of Macau,” he said. “Macau is not on the list yet but we are reviewing Macau’s status. […] There is still some homework that we need to [settle] with the Macau government. At the moment, we are trying our best to [keep] Macau open for our market.”

He admitted that it is challenging to control the activities of Indonesian workers in Macau, as most of them arrive in the city on travel visas.

Hong Kong authorities had previously announced that the city would need 240,000 new domestic workers in the next 30 years to cater to the needs of its aging population.

The consul general revealed that he has met with more than 30 job agencies which travel to Indonesia and the surrounding provinces to find people interested in working in Hong Kong.

He noted that Indonesians are more demanding than Filipino nationals as they master the local language quicker.

Asked whether there is a similar demand in Macau, Tharyat noted that the consulate has not received any official information or announcement.

He added that Hong Kong authorities only grant visas to these workers after receiving a stamp from his office, which is a different process from Macau’s.

He said this is just one of the procedures that the Indonesian consulate uses to keep track of migrant workers, along with local agencies back in Indonesia and Hong Kong.

With over 5,500 Indonesian workers in the city, the consulate – which is open in Macau three days a week – recently expanded its premises due to the increasing number of migrant workers in need of assistance.

The office currently has one personnel in the region that operates a 24-hour hotline, which can be reached from Indonesia as well.

Tharyat said the real challenges are human trafficking syndicates – which bring many Indonesian workers to China and other countries – and the Indonesian nationals who use Macau as a point of transit when travelling to other countries for illegal work, which the consulate cannot control.

“Since [last] year, I have received 13 reports of this type. Of these 13 reports, we managed to help all of them; three cases were brought to trial in Indonesia,” he said.