REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, INDRAMAYU -- A family in Indramayu District of West Java has urged the government to find their relative working in Saudi Arabia. They said that Sarifah, 33, has lost contact with her family for 16 years.

"We have received a report from a resident, who claimed he had lost his daughter, who worked in Saudi Arabia since 16 years ago," Juwarih, chairperson of the Indramayu Migrant Workers Union, stated here on Wednesday.

Juwarih said he had received a report from the worker's father, Sodikin, from Mekargading Village in Indramayu. Sarifah was sent to Saudi in July 2002. She was recruited by Dayuni, a local sponsor in the village.

"She was then sent to Jeddah by PT Khidmat El Kasab, located at Cipinang Cempedak, Jatinegara, Jakarta," he remarked.

After six months of working in the country, Sarifah had sent a letter to her family saying she worked for a person named Yahya Ibrahim and his wife Sofa in Jeddah, Juwarih recalled. She said thatit was the only information she had shared with her family.

Her relatives in Indramayu have repeatedly reported news of her going missing to her sponsor and recruiting agency.

"However, until now, the relatives have yet to receive information, and they hope that the government would help find her," he noted.

The migrant workers union will send a letter to the National Agency for Placement and Protection of Indonesian Workers (BNP2TKI), Foreign Affairs Ministry, Manpower Ministry, and Indonesian Consulate General in Jeddah to address the issue.