Malaysian ambassador emphasises cooperation with Indonesia to deal with illegal workers

JAKARTA - The Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia, Datuk Syed Md Hasrin Tengku Hussin, has emphasised the importance of cooperation between the two countries in overcoming the issue of workers without valid permits through the relevant ministries and agencies.

The statement was made during a meeting with the head of the Indonesian Migrant Workers Protection Agency (BP2MI), Benny Rhamdani, in conjunction with a visit to the BP2MI headquarters in Pancoran, South Jakarta, today.

"Without the cooperation of both parties, it will definitely be difficult for us to provide appropriate protection," he said in the meeting, adding that Malaysia is always committed to providing protection to all foreign workers.

He believes PMI now receives better protection after the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the Recruitment and Protection of Indonesian Domestic Workers (MoU PDI) in 2022. "This has certainly improved the quality of their protection," he said.

Meanwhile, Benny said the Indonesian authorities are actively fighting the crime of human trafficking.

Around 2,300 victims of human trafficking were rescued and 800 individuals were arrested for suspected involvement in human trafficking cases from June 5 to Aug 9.

A delegation from the Malaysian Embassy, led by Syed Md Hasrin, was also taken to visit BP2MI's "command centre”, which monitors the activities of 4.7 million Indonesian migrant workers abroad. - BERNAMA