ABK Long Xing Case Facts: Salary Talk To Slavery

Illustration (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The Directorate of General Crimes, Bareskrim Polri, found new facts regarding the investigation of the criminal act of slavery in person (TPPO) of Indonesian crew members (ABK) who worked on a ship belonging to China, Long Xing 629.

Director of General Crimes at Bareskrim Polri Brigadier General Pol Ferdy Sambo said that three suspects were named in this case. The suspect named in this investigation is in charge of the agency for the distribution of the crew members.

They are William Gozaly from PT Alfira Pratama Jaya, Kiagus Muhammad Firdaus from PT Lakemba Perkasa Bahari, and Joni Kasiyanto from PT Sinar Muara Gemilang. The three of them were arrested on 16 May.

"We have examined the three suspects and detained them and are now at the Police Criminal Investigation Detention Center. From the investigation process, it is illustrated how these 14 crew members became victims of trafficking in persons," said Sambo when confirmed, Thursday, May 21.

Based on the results of interviews with 14 crew members who are still alive and have returned to Indonesia, as well as investigating documents related to this case, the Police Criminal Investigation Unit found the fact that there was an offer for crew salaries that did not match reality and enslavement on board.

High-paying hiring

The suspects, namely William, Joni, and Kiagus recruited prospective crew members. This boat worker was rewarded with a salary of 4,200 US dollars for 14 months (equivalent to Rp61 million).

As it turned out, the promised salary was just nonsense. The crew Joni recruited received only $ 1,350 (Rp.19 million) in wages for 14 months. There are also crew members who do not receive a salary.

The crew members recruited by Kiagus Muhammad Firdaus from PT Lakemba Perkasa Bahari also received a salary discount of 3,550 dollars. This meant that crew members received only $ 650 (Rp. 9 million) for 14 months.

What's worse, the crew members who have been recruited by William have so far not received work wages. The reason is that workers do not sign work contracts. In this way, William's company transferred salary responsibility to the company in Busan.

Practice of slavery

Initially, on February 13 and 14, 22 crew members departed Jakarta for Busan, South Korea and worked on the Long Xing 629 ship.

On September 29, two crew members named Yudha and Karman were transferred from Long Xing 629 to Long Xing 802 due to illness and leaving 20 people behind. The 2 crew members were escorted to the Samoan Islands, to be returned to Indonesia. However, until now the whereabouts of the two men are unknown.

"Of the 20 people, 4 were sick. Then three people were transferred to Long Xing 802. Two people (on the ship) died, one was still on the ship," said Sambo.

Due to improper treatment, 16 crew members of Long Xing 629 asked to be sent home. Because there was no return permit, the crew were transferred to the Tian Yu ship to be returned to Indonesia on March 27, 2020. On the way, one of the 16 crew members died on April 2.

"This is what then gets busy (about the lifting of the bodies from the boat) on social media," said Sambo.

On April 14th, the remaining 15 crew members were quarantined. One person named Efendi died in Busan. Finally, the remaining 14 crew members made it to Indonesia.

Of the total tenure of the crew members, four people died due to illness. Three bodies, namely Sepri, Alfatah, and Ari were floated into the ocean. Meanwhile, one person, Effendi, died in a Busan hospital.

Sambo explained, there were several slavery practices experienced by these crew members. Starting from wage fraud, improper placement of working hours, placing ABK in a position of difficult economic capacity.

"This is aimed at utilizing his energy. From the examination process, there were also several treatments for the crew members that were revealed. There was treatment for 30 hours of work, then some physical violence was experienced," explained Sambo.

The threat of imprisonment for 15 years

In this case, the three suspects were charged under Article 4 of Law Number 21 of 2007 concerning the Eradication of the Crime of Trafficking in Persons, with the threat of imprisonment for a minimum of 3 years and a maximum of 15 years, and a criminal fine of at least IDR 120 million and a maximum fine of IDR 600 million. .

The police are working with experts to apply Article 13 of Law Number 21 of 2007 to corporations. The penalty will be increased by one third, then can be sanctioned for revoking the company's legal entity, seizing assets resulting from criminal acts, dismissing the management, and prohibiting activities in similar fields.