‘Desperate’ Indonesians risk abuse, death in Malaysia by taking jobs from illegal recruiters

Indonesia’s migrant protection agency said nearly 2,000 Indonesian migrant workers had died as a result of abuse, accidents, or illness since 2020

Without proper documentation, access to healthcare or protections from government-licensed agents, Indonesian workers are often vulnerable to exploitation

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East Nusa Tenggara is one of Indonesia’s poorest provinces, making it fertile ground to be targeted by illegal agents. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 2:00pm, 20 Aug 2023Updated: 2:03pm, 20 Aug 2023

Sister Laurentina knows all too well the risks faced by Indonesian migrant workers who go abroad to earn a living.

Since 2017, the Catholic nun has repatriated the bodies of 628 people – almost all from Malaysia – to East Nusa Tenggara, where she runs a shelter for migrants who have experienced abuse.

Danger and exploitation are amplified when Indonesians accept jobs through shady recruiters making big promises, she said. But more people are taking unregulated routes to the job market since the pandemic – and ensuing inflation crisis – crushed their incomes.

“People are desperate and can fall into the trap of using these illegal pathways,” she said, noting that many either travel using falsified documents or are taken on overcrowded motorboats, often from Batam, an Indonesian island neighbouring Malaysia.

Sister Laurentina has repatriated the bodies of more than 600 Indonesian migrant workers to East Nusa Tenggara in the past six years. Photo: Handout

The deaths of these workers can be caused by extreme work conditions, health issues, starvation and in some cases, suicide, Sister Laurentina said, adding that “so many families” had been touched by tragedy.

“I have compassion for them, and try to make sure that these workers are treated with dignity, even after their death,” she said.