REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANJARMASIN -- Indonesian workers should only be allowed to migrate abroad selectively to avoid creating a bad image for Indonesia, an academician said.
"We are sad when we visit a foreign country and meet Indonesian citizens, who only work as housemaids. We should not seek jobs overseas (as a housemaid)," Prof HM Norsanie Darlan of the Central Kalimantan University in Palangka Raya, said on Saturday.
At the same time, other foreign citizens who work abroad feel proud as they work in good positions, such as managers in various companies. "We think other countries train their workers better before sending them abroad," he added.
Indonesia, on the other hand, mostly sends workers with low education and minimal skills, pointed out Darlan, who is the former head of the Education and Training Agency for the Central Kalimantan Government.
He suggested that if Indonesia wants to build a good image and maintain dignity abroad it should plan better before sending workers to foreign countries.
Workers, who want to migrate abroad, should have a university education (skilled graduates), should have mastered one language and should be well-informed about the culture of the country they emigrate to.
"I once visited a hospital abroad where a friend of mine was admitted. The doctor, who treated my friend, was Filipino. But I saw Indonesians only working as parking attendants or in the cleaning service at the hospital. There was no nurse, let alone an Indonesian doctor. This is quite insulting for the dignity of the nation," he said.
Therefore, Indonesia should be really selective in sending workers abroad. They should possess an adequate level of education and skills, including the ability to communicate and understand the local culture.
However, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) continues to support Indonesian housemaids going abroad.
Stopping Indonesian housemaids from working overseas will harm the public due to the loss of income, a Kadin official said.
"The government should not forget the benefits of sending Indonesian migrant workers abroad," Nofel Saleh Hilabi, from the Indonesian Migrant Workers Task Force said on Friday.
He is also the Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).
Hilabi noted that housemaids working abroad helped their families and boost general development, since money from Indonesian migrant workers is remitted back to their villages.
"The income earned by Indonesian migrant workers abroad has benefits, among others, as it supports the economy of villages in rural areas," he said in a written statement.
He noted that the public uses this money as working capital and as funds to send their children to schools, all of which will help improve the welfare of villagers.
"The government should let them decide profession will help them earn a living and the state should monitor them wherever they are," Hilabi added.
On the other hand, the government should also guarantee that there will be no workers sent abroad illegally in an effort to avoid the migration of problematic Indonesian workers to foreign countries.
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