| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 19 (ANTARA) - The people of Aceh province may celebrate with pride when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) officially includes the Saman dance, one of their cultural heritages, in its 'Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity' next November. The inclusion of the Saman dance of Aceh in UNESCO's list will increase the number of Indonesian cultural heritages which have earlier been recognized by the world body such as the 'wayang' puppet show, 'keris' dagger, 'batik' clothes and 'angklung' bamboo music instrument. According to Diankirawaty's weblog, Saman dance is a traditional dance that does not utilize any music instrument. The dancers themselves will sing and clap their hands together to create harmony in movement and sound. It teaches us that, among all differences, corporation and unity can create the finest result especially to encounter any conflict and ego of human beings. The uniqueness and the high spirituality aspect it has, cause the dance to deserve appreciation, preservation and recognition. Thus, the UNESCO is expected to recognize it by including it into its intangible cultural heritage list. "Saman dance will be announced as a world intangible cultural heritage by the UNESCO in Bali on November 19, 2011," Head of Tourism and Cultural Resources of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, I Gde Pitana said on Monday. He said that the recognition by the UNESCO of Saman dance would increase the number of Indonesian cultural heritages which had been recognized by the world body like the wayang puppet, keris dagger, batik clothes and the angklung bamboo music. In order to win the recognition, Indonesia has to work hard and undergo a long verification process. "Ahead, we are targeting more Indonesian cultural heritages that would be recognized by the UNESCO," I Gde Pitana said. He said that to win recognition as a world heritage for Saman dance his office had worked hard since several years ago, the result of which would be announced and included in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity next November. He said that his office has noticed 890 world heritages, of which 689 were cultural heritages, 176 nature heritage and 25 others were mixture heritage of the two. Of the recognized world heritages, 11 belonged to Indonesia, of which four were nature preserves like parks, three cultural preserves like temples and four were intangible cultural heritage. Indonesia is rich in cultural heritages, yet only 11 have been recognized by the UNESCO. Ahead, Pitana hopes that more Indonesian heritages would be listed by the UNESCO, following the recognition of the Aceh Saman dance. The plan of UNESCO to include Saman dance into its list of world intangible heritage of humanity is hailed by the people of Aceh, an Indonesian province in the western tip of Sumatra. "The recognition is something to be pride of by the people of Aceh as it proves the good quality of Saman dance. For this, the government deserves a thumb-up," Imam Juwaini, director of the Asleum Ethnicity Group of Aceh, said. Imam said that the Saman dance that would be included in the UNESCO's list was still a general sense in term of name as in Aceh there were different kinds of Saman dances. Saman dances were basically divided into two kinds, namely the Rateb Duek dance and the Rateb Dong one. The Rateb Duek dance is popular and derived from the hinterland areas while the Rateb Dong one came from Aceh's coastal areas. But in principle, these two types of dances are in one unity. "The people of Aceh have many kinds of saman dances such as the Gayo dance, the Seudati dance in the coastal areas, the Rante Meusekat in Meulaboh, West Aceh, and others such those of Nagan Raya district," Imam said. Therefore, Imam expressed hope that the government would explain which of the Saman dances that would be included in the UNESCO's list of world intangible heritage of humanity. This is important for preventing unilateral or overlapping claims among the people of Aceh. So far, the Saman dance performed in Jakarta and overseas is actually not a genuine Saman dance but 'Rampoe' one, which means that all types of Saman dances in Aceh are adopted and blended in the Rampoe dance. "It should not happen that the dance included in the world heritage only carries a theme and contains no spirit or essence of Saman dance. This would disadvantage the Acehnese who own Saman dances," he said.***6*** |
Selasa, 19 April 2011
UNESCO TO INCLUDE SAMAN DANCE IN WORLD'S HERITAGE LIST
Senin, 18 April 2011
GOVT'S PLAN TO ACQUIRE NEWMONT STAKE DRAWS PROTEST
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 18 (ANTARA) - The government's decision to acquire a seven percent stake in PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (NNT) which operates the Batu Hijau mine, Indonesia's second-largest copper and gold mine in West Nusa Tenggara, is being opposed by the local people and the House of Representatives (DPR). Thousands of West Sumbawa district civil servants and other locals took to the streets on Monday and blocked roads the mining location in protest against the central government's plan to buy the seven percent share in the firm. They demanded that the seven percent stake be offered to the government of West Sumbawa distict, West Nusa Tenggara province. According to Harry Azhar Azis, Finance Minister Agus Martowrdoyo had violated an agreement with the House to hold further deliberations on the purchase of the NNT shares. He said that the finance minister and his commission had agreed to discuss the government's plan to buy NNT'S share after the completion of the House recess period early in May. "If the government has decided to purchase the shares of NNT, it means that the minister has violated the agreement with the House," Harry said. The Indonesian government, through the Government Investment Center (PIP) has bought seven percent of PT NNT's shares as part of the implementation of Article 24 of a work contract signed in 1986. The seven percent purchase is the last phase of the divestment process of Newmont Nusa Tanggara in accordance with Article 24 of the work contract in 1986, according to Hadiyanto, the director general for state asset affairs of the Finance Ministry. Newmont as a foreign firm has passed several phases of divestment process since 1996. The law in Indonesia requires foreign companies in the mining sector to transfer 51 percent of their shares to the government or local companies after five years of commercial operation. So. NNT has the obligation to divest 51 percent of its stake. But since PT Pukuafu Indah, a local company has owned 20 percent stake in it, the company is only required to gradually sell a total of 31 percent of its stake to the government or local parties. However, both the government and NNT were later involved in a dispute on how to implement the divestment scheme. The international arbitration court ruled in favor of the Indonesian government, where NNT had to divest three percent shares for 2006 and seven percent stake for each year from 2007 through 2010. Up to 2009, 24 percent of the divestment process had been carried out, leaving another seven percent in the last phase for 2010. The 24 percent divestment of Newmont's shares from 1996 to 2009 period was held in 2009. The share purchase was made by the regional government through PT Multi Daerah Bersaing, a joint venture between PT Daerah Maju Bersaing (belonging to West Nusa Tenggara provincial administration and Sumbawa Barat district government) and Sumbawa district administration. Hadiyanto said, PIP and Newmont were now in the process of finalizing the terms and conditions for the execution of the seven percent stake purchase. However, Commission XI of the House, Harry said, will question the finance minister's decision. Harry who is a cadre of the Golkar Party faction said that the government should not have made a unilateral decision as it was related to the use of state money. "The use of state money must be approved by the House. The question is that whether the funds that would be used to acquire NNT's shares had been included in the state budget," he said. If the purchase of the shares had no allocation in the state budget while the minister went ahead with his decision, it meant that the minister had violated the law on state budget. In the meantime, rallies held around Newmont Nusa Tenggar mining site, West Sumbawa district, on Monday did not disturb the firm's operation. NNT Public Relations Manager Kasan Mulyono said security officers ensured security so that Newmont remained in normal activities. The mass rallies were held by thousands of civil servants, students and local people who demanded that the seven percent stake should be offered to the local government of West Sumbawa district. Protesters happened to clash with security officers when they approached the mining complex but security officers were able to drive them back. A number of demonstrators were rushed to the nearest community health-care centers as a result of wounds. West Sumbawa government called on NNT not to worsen the condition with statements that hurt the regional government and its people. "The regional government hopes that its cooperation and partnership with the company should not be tarnished with accusations and statements which further worsened the relations," He said that the local people and the regional government had taken part in building the good investment climate so that it would become more conducive for the operation of PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara. "The people's rallies should not be seen as an act of terrors and anarchism that hampered investment," he said. General Manager for Operations of NNT David Lilley earlier on Sunday expressed through a press statement his disappointment on the West Sumbawa district head whom he accused of having a plan to pressurize civil servants so that they would block the Batu Hijau mining location and to halt the operation of the firm. "The district head's task is to enforce the law, ensure public order and support the economic development, not to carry out blockade that would halt the operations of NNT," David Lilley said.***5*** |
Rabu, 13 April 2011
GOVT TO ACT FAST OVER HOSTAGE TAKING
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 13 (ANTARA) - The Indonesian government will act soon in releasing the 22 Indonesian sailors held hostage by Somali pirates aboard MV Sinar Kudus in the Somali waters since March 16, 2011.
"The government is obliged to ensure the immediate release of our citizens. Therefore, various options and policies have been chosen to do so," Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said on Tuesday.Somali pirates, who hijacked the MV Sinar Kudus off the coast of East Africa on its voyage to Holland, demanded a US$2.6 million ransom for the release of the ship and crew, but then they raised the ransom demand to US$3.5 million and then again to US$9 million. The shipment itself is valued at US$1.4 trillion. Since the Sinar Kudus owned by PT Samudera Indonesia was hijacked and its crew members were taken hostage by the Somali pirates, the government has prepared a number of steps including continued contact with the ship's owner. The hijacked "Sinar Kudus" ship is now located half a mile from Somali's coastline. |
Selasa, 12 April 2011
LAWMAKER RESIGNS OVER PORN VIDEO
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 12 (ANTARA) - The resignation from Parliament of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) lawmaker Arifinto for watching a pornographic video during a plenary session last week, was praised by many quarters. Three days after he was caught watching a pornographic video on his tablet computer during a House of Representatives (DPR) plenary session on Friday last week, Arifinto told the press on Monday he was resigning from the House for the sake of his party's honor. Arifinto who was under fire for having watched the viedo, resigned amid a threat of punishment called for by former PKS chairman Tifatul Sembiring. "With all of my conscience, without any pressure from anyone, for the sake of myself and on behalf of my party, I will soon file my resignation as a member of the DPR to my party," Arifinto said. A series of photographs taken by a media photographer shows Arifinto selecting a pornographic film from a folder in his tablet, rather than opening an e-mail link as he had claimed, during the House plenary session. His resignation immediately drew responses supporting the steps he was taking. Arifinto resigned in the face of criticism by former PKS president and now communications and information minister Tifatul Sembiring. The minister proposed that PKS would take a firm action against Arifinto. "I am proposing that PKS should take a firm action against him. This is a serious matter that smeared the image not only of PKS but also of the House," Tifatul Sembiring said. He said that the legal council of the executive board of PKS was deliberating the case of Arifinto. "PKS is now discussing the case. The Legal Council of the party will take action against him," the former PKS president said. Sembiring also called on the Ethics Council of the House to take a firm action against the legislator, if he was proven to have made a mistake. "This is not only the problem of PKS but also of the House. This happened when the DPR is under the spotlight of the people for its plan to build a new building," he said. He said that his ministry would conduct a digital forensic examination. "The ministry of communications and information will cooperate with the legal enforcers to conduct a digital forensic examination and to know whether Arifinto had deliberately downloaded the porn video into his tablet computer or the video had been sent to him. If it turned out that he only received it, it meant that he was only a victim," the minister said. Yet, Arifinto's resignation has been appreciated by many quarters, including the faction of his party in the House of Representatives. Chairman of the PKS faction in the House, Mustafa Kamal appreciated Arifinto's resignation, saying that his step had built a new culture in the Indonesian political sphere, namely the culture of readiness to voluntarily resign as a sign of public responsibility. Kamal said that it showed his high respect to the House as a high state institution and to PKS which he also had found since the beginning. "On my personal behalf and as the chairman of the PKS faction in the House, I hope that all cadres and sympathizers of PKS would accept Arifinto's decision and would not be drawn to further into the problem," Kamal said. In the meantime, Social Affairs Minister Salim Sefaf Al Jufrie who is also a PKS cadre said that Arifinto's resignation should serve as an example for party members in accounting for their deeds. "I think this is a good example, because people would considere PKS as a professional party. We have to maintain this. No matter what his reason is, I think, it is a gentleman attitude that should serve as an example for the people where resignation would no longer become something special if someone makes a mistake. I think this is a good attitude," the minister said. Other legislator, Ade Komarudin of the Golkar Party said that he agreed with the resignation of the PKS lawmaker. "I support his resignation," Komaruddin, who is also secretary of the Golkar Party faction in the House said. "We have to respect the principle of innocence in judging every case," Ade Komaruddin said. He said that the House's Council of Ethics should act immediately to process the case so that it would not tarnish the image of the House as a whole. "If no permanent decision has been taken, of course he would only be in a non active status," he said. His colleague, Idrus Marham, who is Golkar's secretary general, appreciated Arifinto's step to resign, saying it was good for him to resign. The resignation of the lawmaker has received appreciations by several quarters, including the executive director of the Center for Indonesian Reform (CIR), Sapto Waluyo. He said Arifinto's resignation deserved appreciation. "That is a form of self punishment and corrective action by a PKS lawmaker. Many lawmakers who have made bigger mistakes, even have become a corruption suspect, still maintain their positions in the House of Representatives. This is proof for PKS that it is maintaining its minimal moral principles," Sapto said. He said that the step taken by Arifinto would revive some of the public trust on PKS and other political parties that had now become under erosion. "PKS is now under a test as a new national force, whether it is able to consistently maintain its slogan as a clean, professional and caring political party. If PKS is aware of it in carrying out a corrective action systematically, the PKS influence as an agent of change will rise," he said.***3*** |
Minggu, 10 April 2011
TRAFFIC JAM AT MERAK PORT
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 10 (ANTARA) - Merak port in the western tip of Java and Bakauheni harbor in the eastern point of Sumatra, two ports so far serving as a main economic lane for the two important Indonesian islands, have of late experienced traffic flow problems. Trucks transporting commodities needed by consumers in the two main islands of the country were forced to stay in queues for days or even weeks before they could be ferried to their destinations. The main cause of the traffic jams is the decrease in the number of ferries operating to serve heavy flows of cargoes and passengers that would cross the 36-km Sunda Strait. Of the 33 ferries usually plying the route, 11 are now put at dock-yard for maintenance or repair. "There were usually 33 ferry ships operating but now only 22 ships because 11 of them are under repair. This has caused traffic jams at Merak port," Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said on Sunday. Currently however a total of 17 ferries at Merak port in Cilegon city, Banten, are not in operation because they are undergoing maintenance processes or have been sent to dock-yards for repairs. "There are 17 ferries usually serving the Merak-Bakauheni ports which are not in operation. Today, there are only 22 ferries are serving passengers at the two ports," Hery Widarto, a supervisor of TP ASDP for Merak. The government is now considering building a bridge that would connect the Java island with Sumatra in its efforts to solve the transportation problems between Java and Sumatra in the long run, but for solution to the problem in the short term, the government is still trying to find the best way. Among the solutions that are being thought by the government included building additional piers, separating piers between those for faster ships and those for slower ones. The urgent step to be taken is to evaluate docking schedules for ships going for repair of maintenance. For this, Minister Freddy Numberi asked the Inland Waterway Service (PT ASDP) to evaluate its ship-docking arrangements at Merak port. "It should evaluate its docking arrangement and fix accurate schedules. The other efforts that could be made include separating special piers for faster ships," the minister said. He said that his office continued to do its best to overcome the traffic jams that had hampered the flow of trucks at the ferry port of late. Therefore, Numberi said, he has asked PT ASDP and its private partners to evaluate the schedules of ships which would be sent to the dock-yard. The schedules should be arranged properly so that it would not cause overlapping and take too long at the dock-yard. Besides, the other effort that could be made is separating or grouping faster ferries and direct them to certain piers, not to piers where slower ships would also berth at. "Faster ships could be put in a group to be directed to special piers, for example to pier 5 or pier 4," Numberi said He said the government would therefore increase the number of piers at ports so that each of the ferry ports would have six piers. The construction of the piers is a follow up effort to overcome the traffic jams at the two ports which connect Java with Sumatra. The minister said the construction of piers in Merak would cost Rp120 billion while those in Bakauheni would take some Rp450-Rp550 billion. In the meantime, Banten Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah, whose administrative areas included Marak, has asked PT ASDP to help overcome the traffic jams at Merak port. "The queues of trucks willing to be ferried from Merak port in Banten (Java) to Bakauheni port in Lampung (Sumatra) of late are caused by the small number of ships operating," she said. The governor said that besides the small number of ferries, the traffic jam at Merak port had also been caused by bad weather. "Bad weather factor has caused long queues of trucks," she said. The governor said that the best solution to the problem was the construction of the Sunda Strait bridge (JSS) project. "We hope that the JSS project would be started soon. The presidential regulation on that matter is expected to be issued this month," she said. The JSS whose construction is expected to start in 2014 and would constitute the world's second longest bridge (36 km) after the Shanghai bridge in China, will cost some Rp150 trillion. But the JSS project is a solution for the problem in the long run, so that the ports of Merak and Bakauheni must be revitalized soon. Ratu Atut said that revitalization of the ports of Merak and Bakauheni in Lampung should also be carried out. Former mayor of Cilegon, Tb Aat Syafaat, regretted the performance of the transportation ministry which until now was still unable to overcome traffic flow problems at Merak port. "I once submitted a proposal to the ministry of transportation but it seemed that my concept has got no response," he said. When he was still Cilegon city mayor, he proposed the construction of additional piers and increase the number of ships. "Ferries existing now are old ships. They need to be replaced," he said. Most of the 33 ships under ASDP firm at Merak port are already old, or over 25 years, some others even almost reaching 40 years old. It included the Jatra I and Jatra II ferries which were produced in 1980. The others are Jatra III (produced in 1985), BSP I,1973, BSP II,1971, BSP III,1973, Bahuga Pratama, 1992, Bahuga Jaya,1987, Menggala, 1973, Mufidah,1979, Duta Banten, 1973, Jagantara, 1979, Nusa Dharma, 1986, Nusa Bahagia,1979, Victorius, 1990, Laut Teduh I, 1990, Musthika Kencana,1975, HM Baruna,1992, Tribuana, 1997 and Rajabasa I, 1990. Besides that other old ferries are SMS Kartanegara,1984, Windu Karsa Dwita,1997, Windu Karsa Pratama,1993, Titian Nusantara,1995, Panorama Nusantara,1987, Royal Nusantara,1985, Prima Nusantara,1975, Mitra Nusantara,1997, Titian Murni,1985, Nusa Agung,1992, Nusa Jaya,1987, Nusa Mulia, 1992 and Nusa Setia, 1994. ***5*** |
Sabtu, 09 April 2011
CREEPING HAIRY CREATURES 'INVADE' EAST JAVA
Experts said the caterpillars would in due course of time change into cocoons and eventually into butterflies but they also warned that the attacks could recur.
The caterpillar invasion at first happened in Probolinggo district but it later spread to other districts in East Java such as Pasuruan, Jombang, Banyuwangi, Bojonegoro, even to certain districts in Central and West Java.
"It reportedly has spread to other regions," Agriculture Minister Suswono said on Saturday. The minister however called on the people not to panic because the intensity of the pest which attacked the leaves and stems of plants was declining.
The people are called on to remain cautious and coordinate with field officials from the agriculture office when they found potential caterpillar attacks. The regional government of East Java has made every efforts to anticipate the worst impact of the caterpillar attacks.
The caterpillar attacks in East Java's Probolinggo district spread to eight sub-districts and two district in Probolinggo city. The worst attack happened in Sumber Kedawung and Pondok Wuluh villages.
According to Prof. Aunu Rauf, a pest expert at the Bogor-based Institute of Agriculture (IPB), the outbreak of caterpillars was a result of the weather anomalies which killed caterpillar predators. "The prolonged rainy season caused predator Braconid and Apanteles unable to stay alive," he said.
Pest analyst of the Jember Uniersity (Unej) Hari Purnomo said meanwhile that the presence of virus and bacteria were two pathogens which could control the outbreak of caterpillars. "In other countries, NPV (nuclear polyhadrosis virus) and bacteria (Bacillus thuringiensis) are able to oppress the presence of caterpillars because both of them were pathogens which are able to eliminate them," he said.
He said environmental damage and weather anomalies had partly paralyzed predators, parasites and pathogens thus allowing caterpillars to break out and attacked people's plantations. However not all of the predators had disappeared, particularly parasites.
The species of caterpillars which spread in East Java was that of the moth (lymantriidae) family or butterflies which are active during the night time, Hari said.
According to Prof Aunu, the caterpillars which attacked people's plants last week head turned or morphed into cocoons. "The caterpillars have morphed into cocoons or even some have become butterflies. But one should be aware that caterpillars have a life cycle of 1.5 months so that their second attack should be anticipated," Aunu said.
Hari Purnomo said about 50 percent of caterpillar cocoons in the mango plantations of villagers in Probolinggo had died due to attack by parasites, pathogens and predators.
"We found that cocoons in a number of plantation plots which were not sprayed with pesticides have been attacked by parasites up to 50 percent so that the cocoons turned blackish and died," he said.
Yet, Prof. Aunu warned the people of possible second invasion of the pest. "Their development has to be controlled and it could emerge again as the caterpillar has a life cycle of 1.5 months. People must be ready to spray, sweep and burn them because otherwise it would spread. If it remains unchecked it would incur a great loss to the local mango farmers," Aunu said.
After all, reports on the outbreak of the pests said that caterpillar attacks have also reached Central and West Java. Caterpillars have begun to invade mango plants in two villages in Kudus district, Central Java.
Field official of the Agriculture Service of Kudus, Aris Priambudi said caterpillars had attacked the village of Hadiwarno of the Mejobo sub-district and Jati Kulon of Jati subdistrict in Kudus.
"At present, the population of caterpillars that attack people?s mango plants could reached tens of thousands. It could even increase in the coming several days," Aris said.
He said that mango trees become their main homes in the two villages but when they have become massive it is not impossible for them to move to other types of plants.
In West Java, caterpillars have entered two districts, namely Subang and Bekasi districts. According to Oo Sutisna, chairman of West Java's Fisherman and Farmers Association (KTNA), the regional government should take immediate anticipatory steps as two districts have been affected by the pest. "We ask the regional government to take anticipatory steps to stop the spread of the pest," he said.
He said that his organization had reported that caterpillars had attacked the subdistrict of Paseh in Subang and a village in Bekasi. "Based on the report of our friends in KTNA, caterpillars have entered Subang and Bekasi," he said.
Yet, the massive attack of caterpillars in Java has not yet caused significant losses. The Ministry of Agriculture said up to now it has as yet to receive any report on significant damage caused by the caterpillar 'invasion' of several areas in Java.
Agriculture Minister Suswono said the outbreak of the caterpillar pest, especial in Probolinggo, only caused damage to about 1.2 percent of the mango plantation there.
"Up to now, no one has reported to have suffered from losses. The attacked plants were not killed and they were not in a flowering condition. The pest outbreak could not yet be categorized as wreaking havoc on the plants," the minister said.
(T.A014/A/HAJM/21:15/.... ) April 9, 2011
Senin, 04 April 2011
SAUDI BRIDGES HOMES TO INDONESIAN OVERSTAYERS
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, April 5 (ANTARA) - Tens of thousands of Indonesians who overstayed their visas and have taken refuge under several bridges in Saudi Arabia are facing an uncertain fate as the Indonesian government is only planning to repatriate 50 percent of them this year. Of the 50,000 over-stayers, the government is only planning to help some 25,000 return home this year for lack of funds while the remaining 25,000 will still have to stay there until they see what the government will do with them. This year, the Indonesian government only has Rp128 billion in funds to repatriate some 25,000 over-stayers. Until last month, only 2,073 of the planned 25,000 have been facilitated to return home. Yet, the government promises that it will do its best to bring home in stages its nationals who have overstayed their stay permits. Head of the National Agency for Placement and Protection of Indonesian Workers (BNP2TKI) Moh Jumhur Hidyat said in written statement to a hearing with the House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta on Monday said that of the 50 thousand Indonesian nationals/migrant workers (WNI/TKIs), the Indonesian government had repatriated 2,073 in six batches since February 14, 2011. In the near future, the government will again return 2,927 others using ship "Labobar" of the state-owned shipping firm PT Pelni, so that the plan of repatriating 5,000 TKIs in the first phase would immediately be realized. For 2011, the BNP2TKI has not yet set any budget amount for the repatriation of the remaining 45,000 TKIs. "We need additional budget for the continuation of the repatriation," he said. He said the relevant agencies needed to coordinate and gather funding based on the results of a meeting recently held at the office of the coordinating minister for people's welfare. For the repatriation of 5,000 TKIs for the first phase, the government has to spend Rp37.2 billion, of which Rp5.02 billion were owed to the national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia, Rp24.5 billion to Pelni and Rp7.8 billion to others. Of the Rp7.8 billion, 2.5 billion came from the ministry of religious affairs, Rp400 million from the ministry of social affairs, Rp1.8 billion came from the BNP2TKI, Rp393 million from the ministry of health, Rp1.9 billion from police and Rp550 million from the office of the ministry of people's welfare. Jumhur predicted that the number of Indonesian migrant workers in Saudi Arabia reached 1.45 million with some 650 thousands staying in accredited areas of the Indonesian Consul General in Jedda, and Rp800 thousands in the accredited areas of the Indonesian Embassy in Riyadh. He said that the overstayers were initially problematic workers who fled their employers' homes to various boarding facilities partly because they were not paid, treated inhumanely, had heavy workloads, worked not based on their contracts, had sexual harassment, had been abused, were not competent in work and faced cultural shock. Besides, some overstayers are visitors who come to Saudi Arabia to perform a minor haj pilgrimage or umroh. There are umroh travel agencies which have not adopted a good management system so that pilgrims have the potentials to over-stay. This is due to the weaknesses of the system such as the lack of coordination between the Indonesian government and its Saudi counterpart. After all, manpower suppliers and agencies overseas tend to have business orientation only so that they ignore protection and security aspects for workers. In addition, sanctions against manpower supplier firms (PPTKIS) which break the law, are still weak. Even some PPTKIS do not provide enough guidance for employers and fail to provide data on TKIs arrivals for the Indonesian Embassy. Therefore, the government will tighten its control on travel agencies organizing minor hajj pilgrimage (Umroh). Moreover, some 30 percent of overstayers who have been sent home turned out to have come from umroh travel agencies. "Records on Indonesian migrant workers (TKI) who overstayed in Saudi Arabia and have been returned to Indonesia show that about 30 percent of them came from umroh pilgrimage groups," Manpower Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said in a hearing with the House of Representatives on Monday. He said that the overstayers worked illegally after they performed religious rituals. "They want to perform rituals and work at the same time," he said. "Some others said they wanted to go home for free (waiting for repatriation) or wanted to follow their husbands who worked in Saudi Arabia," he added. Based on the findings, the manpower ministry has asked the ministry of religious affairs to tighten its supervision on travel agencies organizing umroh pilgrimage. The manpower ministry will also tighten its control over irresponsible manpower supplier firms that are found to have neglected their workers in Saudi Arabia. "In order not to repeat this problem the manpower ministry and other relevant agencies will seriously tighten the mechanism in the sending of migrant workers, especially to the Middle East," the minister said. (T.A014/A/HAJM/12:55/f001 )05-04-2011 12:49:5 |