Jakarta (ANTARA) –
The Indonesian government is striving to repatriate Indonesian citizens who have fallen victim to trafficking and are being forced to work as online gambling administrators abroad.
Deputy Minister for the Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers, Dzulfikar Ahmadi Tawalla, made the statement in response to reports of some citizens being lured abroad with offers of large incomes and then being forced to work as online gambling administrators instead.
“We are striving to bring home (Indonesians) from there,” he said here on Thursday.
Tawalla assured that his ministry has been intensively coordinating with the police and the destination countries’ foreign ministries to resolve the issue.
“Most of the reports came (from) Cambodia and Myanmar,” he informed.
He noted that on average, Indonesian citizens who are performing online gambling-related jobs abroad left the country illegally.
The government only found out about their cases when they made contact or asked for help.
According to Tawalla, many of these Indonesians’ traveling documents and communication tools were confiscated by their employers.
“So, the opportunity to communicate with them is very little,” he explained.
With such little communication means, he said, the government is working with the local police and other authorities to take tactical and fast actions to bring the workers home.
Earlier, Minister of Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers, Abdul Kadir Karding, had called for strengthening protection mechanisms for migrant workers.
President Prabowo Subianto has tasked the ministry with reducing and minimizing the exploitative treatment of migrant workers as well as cases of human trafficking.
The Indonesian Embassy in Phnom Penh reported that as of March 2024, at least 17,121 Indonesian citizens have self-reported their residency in Cambodia.
However, the Cambodian authorities informed that there are as many as 73,724 Indonesians holding residence permits in that country.
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Translator: Rangga J, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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