Voicing the voiceless of Indonesian women migrant workers
As part of the Human Rights Festival, the ILO through its ILO-UN Women Safe and Fair Programme under the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative conducted a journalism exhibition and discussion to voice the voiceless of Indonesian migrant workers.
Various in-depth reporting and articles regarding the plight of Indonesian women migrant workers by selected Indonesian journalists were exhibited during ILO’s side event of the Human Rights Festival, organized by the the President’s Executive Office, National Human Rights Commission, INFID and Semarang City Government.
Journalism exhibition to promote the rights of women migrant workers The participation of the ILO was conducted through its joint ILO-UN Women Safe and Fair Programme under the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative. The programme aims to promote safe and fair labour migration for all women in the region.
Held on 18 November, the journalism exhibition caught the attention of hundreds of visitors from within the country and migrant workers from destination countries like Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Middle East. The exhibition aimed to advocate rights of and eliminate violence against Indonesian women migrant workers. The exhibition was part of the media fellowship programme, jointly conducted with the Alliance of Independent Journalist (AJI) Jakarta with the participation of 10 professional journalists across Indonesia.
During my reportage, I learnt about the death of a woman migrant worker after 13 years being trafficked and she is not the only one. Thus, I just want to make sure that her voice can still be heard."
Adinda R. Kusumo, a reporter from Kompas TV
During the interactive discussion about the reporting journeys, one of the participating journalists, Suci Sekarwati, a reporter from Tempo.co, a leading media group in the country, shared her story about Gendis, a woman migrant worker, in Hong Kong. Her article highlighted the vulnerability of Indonesian women migrant workers to sexual harassment and violence due to limited spaces that have denied their rights of privacy.
Meanwhile, Adinda R. Kusumo, a reporter from Kompas TV, a well-known TV channel, shared her series of in-depth TV reporting about women migrant workers from East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) who fell victims of trafficking in persons. Lack of job opportunities and migration cultural tradition, women of NTT tend to look for overseas jobs to find better livelihoods to support their families without knowing their migrant rights.
Presenting a different perspective of migrant workers, Maratun Narsihah, a reporter from Suara Merdeka, a leading media in Central Java, published three series of articles about women Indonesian migrant workers who tirelessly empower other migrant workers through their advocative writings. Using social media platforms, they advocate rights of migrant workers and urge destination countries to provide better protection to migrants.
Becoming the voices of Indonesian migrant workers
When asked why they were interested in participating at the media fellowship programme on migrant workers, they all said that they strive to be the voice of the voiceless of Indonesian migrant workers, particularly women migrant workers.
“During my reportage, I learnt about the death of a woman migrant worker after 13 years being trafficked and she is not the only one. Thus, I just want to make sure that her voice can still be heard,” said Adinda.
The participating journalists shared their experiences in reporting labour migration issues Similarly, Suci said that she wanted to raise the awareness of potential migrant workers about their rights and the importance of learning the reality of their work before departing overseas. “Indonesian migrant workers, particularly women migrant workers, need to be knowledgeable about their rights and working conditions so that they can better protect themselves.”
Meanwhile, Maratun emphasized her intention to turn negative perception about Indonesian migrant workers. “Our migrant workers are capable and empowering. They also fight for their fellow migrants to get justice they deserve,” she said adding that Indonesian women migrant workers in Taiwan are known for their advocacies and have been awarded with Taiwan Literacy Award.
Working overseas is the human right of all Indonesian citizens... We also continue raising the awareness about getting the information from official service providers and not from mediators."
Devriel Sogia, Director of Non-Governmental Placement in Asia and Africa of the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers (BP2MI)
Responding to the journalists’ views and experiences, Devriel Sogia, Director of Non-Governmental Placement in Asia and Africa of the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers (BP2MI), admitted the violence of rights that are still faced by Indonesian migrant workers. However, he added that the Indonesian government has continued taking initiatives to better protect their migrants.
“Working overseas is the human right of all Indonesian citizens. One of the steps taken, for example, is to provide video visualization about the real working conditions to potential migrants. We also continue raising the awareness about getting the information from official service providers and not from mediators,” he said.
He also emphasized the need for well-coordination between national and regional governments. The regional governments have now been involved in providing services to Indonesian migrant workers and their families.
Highlighting the services provided by the government and its partners, M. Ridho Amrullah, Coordinator for The Protection of Indonesia Migrant Worker the Ministry of Manpower, explained about the integration of government’s one-roof services with Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) at the district that is also outreaching to the village levels. These services are now being piloted in four regions known as sending areas of Indonesian migrant workers: Cirebon, Blitar, Tulungagung and Lampung Timur,
“These initiatives are part of the implementation of the Law on the Protection of Indonesia Migrant Worker No 18/2017 which aims to provide better protection and services to Indonesian migrant workers. These initiatives are implemented with multi stakeholders, including the Safe and Fair: Realizing Women Migrant Workers’ Rights and Opportunities in the ASEAN Region,” he said.
