"Saudi Arabia has always asked for low salaries. Since 2015, they have asked for US$300, or approximately Rp5 million. But, in fact, they lack protection system (for migrant workers)," Karding said here on Tuesday.
In addition to demanding health protection for Indonesian workers during their employment, the government is also seeking protection for those who are laid off from work.
The government requires that Indonesians sent to Saudi Arabia work under a distribution company, rather than directly with prospective employers, as this would make it easier to hold the company accountable if something happens to the workers.
"So, we have to be sure of these two issues. Saudi Arabia, if it is willing, must cooperate and work on these two requirements," Minister Karding said.
Before lifting the moratorium on sending Indonesian workers to Saudi Arabia, he will also seek written inputs from migrant worker activist organizations on ways to better manage the placement of the workers.
"(We should consider) what are the social impacts, what are the benefits," he said.
During a meeting with Coordinating Minister of Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Penitentiary Affairs, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Indonesia, Faisal bin Abdullah Amodi, highlighted the drastic decline in the number of Indonesian migrant workers in Saudi Arabia.
Earlier, there were around two million Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia; however, currently, their number has shrunk to just 100 thousand, according to data from the Indonesian Embassy in Riyadh.
The decline in the number of Indonesian workers, according to Ambassador Amodi, can likely be attributed to the moratorium, which has been in place since 2015.
He said he expects Indonesia to send more migrant workers to Saudi Arabia.
For almost a decade, Indonesia made it illegal for migrant workers to be sent to any of the 19 Middle Eastern nations, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, to work for individual employers, citing abuses that workers had encountered there. (INE)
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Translator: Kuntum Khaira Riswan, Yashinta Difa
Editor: Atman Ahdiat
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