INDONESIA - MIGRATION IN 1998

In light of the crisis, Indonesia had to let go of skilled expatriates. There were some 63,000 highly skilled foreign workers in Indonesia whose salaries cost the country some US$3.5 billion, compared with the US$1 billion remitted by about three million Indonesian workers. In order to save on precious foreign exchange and to open more opportunities to locals, Indonesian firms started repatriating foreign workers in late 1997 and more repatriations were scheduled in early 1998.

Battered by all sorts of problems, Indonesia was likened by many observers as a volcano on the verge of a violent eruption. Rising unemployment, the withdrawal of government subsidy for fuel, and escalating food prices drove many ordinary Indonesians to the streets. The calls were not just for economic reforms but political reforms as well. The unrest reached its peak in the May demonstrations and riots. Lootings, the burning of buildings and establishments, and violence broke out. Foreigners fled Indonesia for safer grounds. Indonesian Chinese, who were seen to have prospered enormously under Suharto’s administration, also sought refuge in neighboring countries. Suharto eventually stepped down on 22 May after a 32-year rule.

Earlier incidents of violence against the ethnic Chinese sparked speculations of an exodus, perhaps a permanent one. The 6.5 million ethnic Chinese form a vital entrepreneurial class and their departure may leave a significant void in Indonesia. The resurgence of violence against the ethnic Chinese was framed as the anger of disadvantaged Pribumis against the economically-upward Chinese. A different perspective emerged in light of the scale of the damage, and the speed and systematic way in which the May violence unraveled. The initial silence on the rape of Chinese girls and women — in contrast to the detailed reporting of the lootings and the burnings — added to the suspicion that the violence may have been orchestrated by the military. What most reports also ignored was the fact that there were fraternal links between the Pribumis and Chinese Indonesians, even during the violence, which dispels the idea of an unbridgeable gap between the two communities.

The international community rallied behind the ethnic Chinese. In particular, the Chinese diaspora extended support to the Indonesian Chinese; they urged for an investigation of the violence (particularly the rape cases) and called on the Indonesian government to protect the ethnic Chinese. For the Chinese diaspora, the incident was yet another reminder of the vulnerability and uncertainty of their position in their adoptive countries. The overseas Chinese also used their economic clout to secure better protection for the Indonesian Chinese (e.g., Taiwan’s statement of hiring fewer Indonesian workers unless the government extends protection to ethnic Chinese). When relative calm returned to Indonesia, several reports noted the return of ethnic Chinese.

Elsewhere in Indonesia, independence movements resurfaced in Aceh and East Timor, and set off population movements in the process. Tensions between the local population and settlers resulted in the out-migration of the latter. Meanwhile, Acehnese and East Timorese overseas met many hurdles in getting recognition as refugees. In the case of Acehnese in Malaysia, authorities did not distinguish between economic migrants and refugees. Several Acehnese refugees resorted to more drastic measures — forcing their way in the compounds of several embassies — to seek protection.

Indonesia’s myriad troubles unnerved its neighbors. An editorial in The Straits Times explains why: "A stable and prosperous Indonesia is a bulwark of regional order; correspondingly, an unstable and impoverished Indonesia will be a source of great regional danger." Anticipating an influx of Indonesian migrants, Malaysia and Singapore reinforced control of their borders to keep undocumented migrants out. Both countries adopted stringent sanctions against violators, including caning. Throughout 1998, hardly a week passed without reports of Indonesians being arrested, detained, turned away or deported from Malaysia and Singapore. Still, many Indonesians kept trying. The unlucky ones bore the brunt of the crackdown; some even lost their lives in their attempt to escape the hard life in Indonesia. Some Indonesians also sought refuge in the Philippines where some 1,100 (the Philippines’ Bureau of Immigration estimated 20,000) are said to have settled clandestinely in Palawan and Mindanao. Those deported back to Indonesia could not find much succor from the government. Without a reintegration program and the sheer lack of resources to offer one, the government advised returning migrants to undertake skills training so they can be better prepared for the global market.

The plight of Indonesian migrant workers had advocates worried over human rights issues. There were concerns that in its zeal to enforce its laws and regulations, Malaysia may be violating the human rights of Indonesian migrants. Malaysia’s decision to cut short the review process in determining the legal status of a migrant worker also speaks of greater concern for cost-saving than in respecting the rights of migrants. Indonesian migrants were also warned — by Malaysia and their own government as well — not to participate or to export their reformasi in Malaysia (in connection with the demonstrations and protests over the arrest of Anwar Ibrahim in September). The dreaded repatriation of large numbers of Indonesian workers did not occur until the last quarter of 1998. At the expiration of the work permits in August, workers not allowed to stay had to leave the country. Malaysia offered an amnesty program to those unable to leave as of the end of August; migrants were given until the end of October to leave Malaysia unpunished. Since the amnesty program, some 155,000 irregular migrants were repatriated to Indonesia.

The government sought to explore overseas jobs for its nationals. Based on reports that Singapore agents pass on recruitment costs to Indonesian domestic helpers (who could go without salary for months to repay their debts), the Indonesian government suspended the deployment of maids beginning September. The suspension remained throughout the rest of 1998. The prospect for overseas work for Indonesians brightened up somewhat in late 1998 when Malaysia announced it will give priority to Indonesians when it resumes importation of workers in 1999.