Migrant Workers From Cianjur Experience Rape Attempt In Iraq, Ministry Of Foreign Affairs' Manpower And Transmigration Office

Head of Manpower Placement (PTK) of Cianjur Manpower and Transmigration Office, West Java, Hero Santoso. (ANTARA/Ahmad Fikri).

CIANJUR - The Manpower and Transmigration Office (Disnakertrans) of Cianjur Regency, West Java, helped the return of migrant workers from Cianjur on behalf of Rina who was tortured in the country of Iraq by writing to the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu). Head of Manpower Placement (PTK) of the Cianjur Manpower and Transmigration Office, Hero Santoso, said various efforts were made, including coordinating with ministries and the Indonesian Embassy in Iraq, so that migrant workers from Cibeber District could return to their homeland. "We have coordinated with the family in Sukabakti Village, Sukamanah Village, Cibeber District, to obtain information on the departure concerned to work abroad," he said in Cianjur, Antara, Thursday, April 25. Hero explained that information from the family, Rina left for Iraq from 2019 to 2021 and left again at the end of 2022 through sponsors from Sukabumi illegally or non-procedurally, she was employed as a household assistant and had moved employers twice. Rina received acts of violence and attempted rape at her second employer's house, while in her first employer she chose to quit because there was no clarity regarding salaries that were often late. "Currently, the person concerned lives with an Indonesian citizen from Surabaya in a rented house in Erbil City, Iraq, then we will wait for instructions and directions from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding Rina's return to Indonesia," he said. As reported by the West Java DPW Migrant Workers Protection Forum (FPMI), it was reported that migrant workers from Cianjur on behalf of Rina were tortured and attempted rape from their employers who worked in Iraq. Even in a video sent by an Indonesian citizen where he is currently riding, the victim has difficulty walking due to the injuries suffered, especially in the leg due to acts of violence and resistance when he was about to be raped. The head of the West Java DPW FPMI, Dhani Rahmad, said that his party had coordinated with the Indonesian Embassy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help the return of the migrant worker from Cianjur, in the hope that it would soon be granted because the family was very hopeful.

"We have coordinated with various parties including the ministry to help Rina return to her family. So far, we have received many similar complaints from migrant workers who on average departed illegally or non-procedurally," he said.