Labor agencies trafficking migrant domestic workers into Syria

By Meris Lutz, The Daily Star, May 18, 2013

BEIRUT: Dozens of migrant domestic workers are being trafficked over the Lebanese border into Syria every month, despite the war raging there and official bans by Syria and several major source countries against bringing in new labor, officials from the Indonesian and Philippine embassies said Friday.

The officials’ comments were made during a meeting with experts from the International Labor Organization, who agreed that the trafficking of women into Syria, often by force or deception, is an extreme example of what can happen when labor

No Indonesian domestic helpers for Lebanon

Today, Al-Akhbar and As-Safir reported that Lebanon and Indonesia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the 7th of this month related to migrant domestic workers, as noted in my previous blog post. According to the Indonesian News Agency, the MoU was signed by Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Muhaimin Iskandar and his Lebanese counterpart Boutros Harab in Beirut, Lebanon, on Tuesday.

BUT, the Indonesian government declared that it will not allow for its citizens to work in Lebanon because it deems the security situation, namely in South Lebanon, unfavorable.

Below is Al-Akhbar's short article, and the original full length Antara (Indonesian News Agency) article.

إندونيسيا لا ترسل عمالاً إلى لبنان... الأسباب أمنية

أعلنت الحكومة الإندونيسية أمس أنها لم تتخذ بعد قراراً بإرسال خدم إلى لبنان «لأن الوضع الأمني في ذاك البلد ليس ملائماً حتى الساعة»، وفق ما جاء في خبر نشرته وكالة «يو بي آي».
نقلت وكالة الأنباء الإندونيسية «أنتارا» عن مديرة قسم العمال الإندونيسيين المهاجرين في وزارة العمل والهجرة روستيا واتي قولها «رغم أن لبنان آمن للعمال الإندونيسيين المهاجرين، فإن النزاعات ما زالت تستعر في الأجزاء الجنوبية من البلد».
وكانت الحكومتان اللبنانية والإندونيسية قد وقعتا في 7 نيسان الجاري مذكرة تفاهم لتبادل العمال.

المصدر: جريدة الأخبار
عدد الخميس ١٥ نيسان ٢٠١٠
http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/185524

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - April 14 2010 - The Indonesian government will not yet send its domestic helpers to Lebanon as the security situation in that country is not yet favorable.

"We have not yet opened opportunities to send our housemaids to Lebanon. While Lebanon is already safe for the placement of Indonesian migrant workers, the conflicts were still raging in the southern parts of that country, so that for their own safety, we have not decided to send our domestic helpers to that country," Director of Overseas Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers of the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, Roostiawati said in Jakarta Tuesday.

Roostiawati said the MoU between Indonesia and Lebanon merely dealt with Indonesian migrant workers employed in the formal sector.

Earlier, the Indonesian and Lebanese governments signed an MoU on the exchange of workers.

The MoU was signed by Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Muhaimin Iskandar and his Lebanese counterpart Boutros Harab in Beirut, Lebanon, on Tuesday (April 7).

According to Minister Muhaimin Iskandar in a press statement Friday, the MoU was a step forward since Indonesia did not declare Lebanon as a country for the placement of Indonesian migrant workers.

"With the MoU, Lebanon has become one of the countries in the Middle East for the placement of Indonesian migrant workers," he said.

Besides the placement of Indonesian migrant workers, the minister said the protection
of the migrant workers also received special attention.

"Indonesia is committed to send its workers to Lebanon. The Lebanese government, in this case its labour ministry, is therefore expected provide Indonesian with information on the employment opportunities in the formal sector," he said.

Lebanon has a big market potential for Indonesian skilled migrant workers.Lebanon, where the tourism industry is a priority sector, was in need of at least 40 thousand workers each year.

More high-rise office buildings, hotels and residential complexes are being built by the government and businesspeople in Lebanon, so that the country needs thousands of workers. The country also needed nurses and paramedics as well as workers for the oil and gas industry.

The Jakarta Post: Middle East countries agree to improve protection of migrant Indonesian workers

Interesting information: The Jakarta Post wrote yesterday, 04/13/2010, that Lebanon has signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indonesia, covering health services and working hours of migrant workers. Can someone tell me where we can find the MoU and with which ministry it was signed?

Full article:

Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Lebanon and Saudi Arabia have agreed to improve protection of Indonesian migrant workers employed in the Middle East countries.

Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar had visited the four countries and discussed efforts to protect Indonesia’s migrant workers, Secretary of the Directorate General for Workers' Training and Placement, Abdul Malik Harahap, said Tuesday.

Qatar, UAE and Lebanon have signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) covering health services and working hours. Saudi Arabia has yet to sign pending its drafting of new legislation on migrant workers, especially those working as domestic helpers.

“A total of nine countries have already signed the MoU,” the Director of Migrant Worker Placement, Rostiawati, told The Jakarta Post, citing Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Kuwait, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and UAE.

Indonesia hopes to improve its migrant workers’ situation by guaranteeing their basic rights and improving their placement.

“There are still some of our workers in shelters in Qatar; Abu Dhabi, UAE; and in Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, waiting to be sent home,” Rostiawati added.