INDONESIA has lifted the temporary ban on its workers seeking employment in Malaysia, ending the standoff between the two countries.

Indonesia’s Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah in a joint statement with Human Resources Minister M Saravanan said all recruitment could resume from August 1.

Ida said the temporary freeze was lifted upon an agreement between the two ministries that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the Recruitment and Protection of Domestic Workers would be implemented effectively.

Earlier in March, the Malaysian and Indonesian governments had reached an agreement on the final draft of an MOU on the placement and protection of Indonesian domestic workers in Malaysia.

The MOU agreed on salaries, weekly and annual leave entitlements, a ban on withholding passports, the right to communicate, and only one domestic worker per household of six people.

However, on July 13, Indonesia imposed a temporary ban on its workers entering Malaysia following accusations that Malaysia had breached the terms in the MOU months after it was signed.

Indonesia’s ambassador to Malaysia Hermono had sent an official communication on the matter to Saravanan.

According to Hermono, Indonesia had solid evidence that Putrajaya had been using the Maid Online System in the recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers, which is a breach of the MOU.

The Human Resources Ministry had responded that it would discuss with the Home Ministry on how to reply to Indonesia’s decision.

At the same time, Migrant Care representative Alex Ong had called for the sacking of Human Resources director-general Asri Ab Rahman for failing to advice the ministry over the matter.

“Bureaucrats in the home and human resources ministries are causing gaps in implementation and efficiency,” he said.

“The Human Resources director-general cannot ignore his accountability for the outcome of the MOU or ignore ongoing bad practices,” he added. - July 28, 2022.