Protection for Indonesians Should Start from Within

Mohamad Hadi, 73, a fisherman from Batu Bara regency, North Sumatra (left), embraces his son, granddaughter and daughter-in-law in an emotional moment at Kualanamu Airport, Deli Serdang, Tuesday (12/3/2019). Hadi and five other fishermen had been arrested and detained for two months by Malaysian authorities for allegedly violating state boundaries. They were finally released because they were found to have stranded after their navigation equipment had been stolen by pirates and the anchors had been cut off at sea.

Indonesians will continue to face problems abroad as long as no improvements are made to protect them while they are still in Indonesia. Villages should be empowered to be on the frontlines of domestic protection.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Total diplomacy to set Indonesians free from the death penalty abroad must be maintained. The government has been urged to strengthen its international diplomacy by prioritizing its management of problematic Indonesian migrant workers through an integrated protection system.

Foreign Ministry data shows that as of late 2018, 165 Indonesians faced capital punishment in several countries. President Joko Widodo has reaffirmed that the government will continue to provide help for all Indonesians facing legal troubles abroad.

The President said following the dismissal of charges against Siti Aisyah in the murder case of Kim Jong Nam – the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un –, the government would continue to provide help to all Indonesians facing legal troubles abroad.

“It is the duty of the government to help all Indonesians facing troubles abroad,” the President told reporters after receiving Siti Aisyah at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday (12/3/2p019).

Siti was freed of all charges in the murder case, in which she was to face the death penalty, after going through 25 months of legal proceedings in Malaysia. On Monday, the prosecutor dropped all charges against Siti. Total diplomacy involving various government bodies had a huge role in helping Siti regain her freedom.

KOMPAS/NIKSON SINAGA

Misdi, 45, a fisherman from Batu Bara regency, North Sumatra, hugs and kisses his wife in an emotional goodbye at Kualanamu Airport, Deli Serdang, Tuesday (12/3/2019). Misdi and five other fishermen had been arrested and detained for two months by Malaysian authorities for allegedly violating state boundaries. They were finally released because they were found to have stranded after their navigation equipment had been stolen by pirates and the anchors had been cut off at sea.

The Foreign Ministry’s director of citizens’ protection abroad, Lalu M. Iqbal, said 165 Indonesians were facing the death penalty abroad. Up to 80 percent of them were in Malaysia. Some of them are implicated in narcotics cases.

Iqbal said in many countries, the government had appointed lawyers who accompanied Indonesians facing legal troubles. “The government strives to serve and protect all Indonesians abroad, equally. Including Siti Aisyah, 279 Indonesians have been set free from the death penalty since 2014,” he said.

Village involvement

However, with respect to Indonesians’ protection, the government has been urged to prioritize an integrated protection system that involves villages. Migrant Care executive director Wahyu Susilo said that the government should establish Indonesian migrant workers’ protection agencies involving regional and village administrations.

The agencies, Wahyu said, would be highly necessary as Law No. 18/2017 on protection on Indonesian migrant workers stipulated that regional government should be involved in strengthening protection for Indonesian migrant workers. “It has been required for the past 1.5 years as an operational foundation in building a transparent and integrated governance for migrant workers’ protection,” Wahyu said.

Migrant Care’s head of center of migration studies, Anis Hidayah, said that improvements in the protection of Indonesians abroad, which had been in place since 2012, would not be effective if domestic problems remained unresolved. “The Manpower Ministry and the Villages, Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Ministry should work together to help villages prepare themselves in managing migration. Use the village fund for this purpose,” she said.

“Illegal recruiters of migrant workers have spread to many villages. If we are serious in reducing illegal migration that leads to various problems, we need to start from villages,” said head of migrant and justice commission Paschalis Saturnus Enong of the Riau Islands Episcopal Vicar at the Diocese of Pangkal Pinang.

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Siti Aisyah, who was recently acquitted of all charges in connection with the murder of Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, meets President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday (12/3/2019). The Malaysian High Court acquitted Siti Aisyah after the public prosecutor retracted the charges at a trial session in Malaysia on Monday (11/3/2019).

For protection abroad, Anis urged the government to ensure that other countries adhered to rule of submitting a mandatory consular notification (MCN) every time Indonesians were facing legal troubles. “The Vienna Convention regulated about the MCN. However, some countries, like Saudi Arabia, do not abide by it. Often, we know about executions of Indonesians [in Saudi Arabia] only after the fact, like in the case of Tuti Tursilawati,” Anis said.

Tuti was executed by the Saudi Arabian government in October 2018, in a murder case. Riyadh had never sent any consular notification beforehand. This was similar to the execution of Zaini Misrin, also in Saudi Arabia, in March 2018.

Separately, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said that protection for Indonesians facing legal troubles abroad would be highly dependent on the legal case. If there is evidence for the crime, legal interventions would be difficult. Nevertheless, the government always strives to set free all Indonesians facing legal troubles abroad – at least to reduce the sentence.

Welcome ceremony for Siti

After her reception at the Presidential Palace, Siti Aisyah was scheduled to go back to her hometown in Sindangsari village, Pabuaran district, Serang regency, Banten. Locals have prepared a “welcome home” celebration for her. A banner thanking President Joko Widodo has been put up.

Siti’s uncle Samsuri, 55, said locals had begun to gather at Siti’s house at around 3 p.m. Siti’s cousin Darmi, 46, said a Quran recital would be held once Siti had rested. “I am involved in organizing the welcoming party for her. We have prepared yellow rice,” she said.

(INA/BAY/HAM/RAZ)