Susilo and Badawi sign deal on illegal immigrants in Malaysia
Singapore (AsiaNews) Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono arrived in Singapore today after a visit to Malaysia, where he reached an agreement with his Malaysian counterpart, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, over the sensitive issue of the thousands of Indonesian illegal workers in Malaysia.
In Singapore the Indonesian President will discuss trade, tsunami relief efforts and a possible extradition treaty that would help bring to justice Indonesian business tycoons who have allegedly parked their fortunes the city-state.
In his meeting with the Malaysian Prime Minister, Susilo was able to convince the Malaysian government to help Indonesian migrant workers to sue their employers who had not paid their wages during their working period in Malaysia. Currently, there are an estimated 400,000 illegal Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia.
Last week-end, the announcement that Indonesia would hire Malaysian lawyers to sue Malaysian employers to recover back wages for its illegal workers had caused political waves in Malaysia. Not surprisingly, some Malaysian companies and the Malaysian government turned the tables and said that Indonesia was to blame for the problem.
Yesterday, the issue was solved after a meeting between Susilo and Badawi. The Malaysian Prime Minister said in a joint conference with the Indonesian President that the Malaysian government was willing to coax employers to be fair.
Mr Badawi said his country was committed to fostering good bilateral relations with Indonesia as well as helping its neighbour in post-tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction in Aceh.
The Prime Minister also told reporters that he hoped Malaysia would continue to rely on the thousands of Indonesian workers in its industries.
Both countries benefit from the presence of Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia. The host country profits from foreign workers who are paid less than their counterparts from the Philippines and Vietnam, whilst Indonesia gets 'political benefits' from a lower domestic unemployment rate.
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