Jokowi Orders To Eradicate TIP, BP2MI Is Ready To Implement

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Migrant Workers Protection Agency (BP2MI) is ready to follow up on President Joko Widodo's orders in an effort to prevent and eradicate the crime of trafficking in persons (TPPO).

"The President's order is clear, we will carry out seriously in the field, this commitment to the republic and the Red and White must not be harmed by the presence of syndicates and mafia," said Head of BP2MI Benny Rhamdani in the Jakarta Presidential Palace, Tuesday, May 30, confiscated by Antara.

Benny conveyed this after attending an internal TIP eradication meeting chaired by President Jokowi.

According to the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) Mahfud MD, who also attended the meeting, the President has ordered to restructure the TIP prevention and eradication task force.

In addition, the President also ordered government officials, including the National Police and the TNI, to take quick steps in the next month regarding TIP to show the public that the state is present and act quickly.

"The president has ordered the war against syndicates to continue. The state must not lose, the state must be present, and the law must work," said Benny.

In BP2MI's own body, Benny revealed that his party had fired a staff member with the status of a civil servant (PNS) about eight months ago because he was involved in an illegal placement syndicate.

"This is a crime against humanity that the state must not obey or lose against syndicates and mafia. It is naive if this country is actually for the placement of workers controlled by syndicates and mafia," he said.

Benny also conveyed that data in the last three years BP2MI has handled approximately 94,000 Indonesian migrant workers who were deported from Middle Eastern countries and Asia.

According to Benny of that number, 90 percent were those who when departing through unofficial channels and were dispatched by illegal placement syndicates.

"Then the bodies are approximately 1,900, meaning that every day on average two coffins enter the country. The same is true, 90 percent are those who used to depart unofficially, victims of illegal syndicate placements," said Benny.

In addition, Benny said there were data that there were at least 3,600 PMIs who experienced illness, depression, memory loss, and even physical disabilities.

Benny added that warnings about TIP practices had emerged since World Bank data said that in 2017 there were 9 million Indonesian citizens working abroad.

P2MI's Computerization System (Siko) data noted that at that time there were only 4.7 million PMIs abroad.

"So the assumption is that 4.3 million Indonesians work abroad who depart unprocedurally and are believed to be (sent) by illegal placement syndicates," he concluded.