Malaysia Unites Indonesians Of Various Ethnic Communities

By Mohd Razman Abdullah KUALA LUMPUR, May 24 (Bernama) -- For Indonesians here, Malaysia is not just a place to eke out a decent living. The host country also helps bring the various ethnic communities from Indonesia closer. Sani Mohammad, 51, a Javanese from Yogyakarta, bears testimony to that. Since arriving in Malaysia, about 18 years ago, the permanent resident has become good friends with Roni Agam Abdullah, 29, from Loksumawe, Acheh, North Sumatra. He said his wife sewed curtains with the assistance of Roni Agam whose expertise was installing curtains in the homes of his wife's clients. Sani, who works as supervisor and driver to a Pahang entrepreneur dealing with housing projects here, said: "Whereas in Indonesia, we might not have met. This is because, back home, we are physically separated, with other factors coming into play, such as politics. "The difference in Malaysia is that, we are here to make a living. Our differences have been put aside for our survival." More importantly, Sani said, he had not been harassed by any Malaysian enforcement agency or treated badly by the authorities. "In fact, my family and I are blessed to be working and staying in this country. Our only daughter is happily married to a local," he said. Roni Agam, who has been working as a construction worker here since six years ago, said work was not permanent as it depended on projects. Thus, he also worked part-time helping to instal curtains for US$15.87 (RM50) or more, depending on the nature of work. Meanwhile, Kuala Lumpur Social Development, Crime Prevention and Anti-Drugs voluntary organisation president Jeevan S. Ramamurthy dismissed allegations by certain quarters that immigrant workers in Malaysia were harassed. He said such allegations were untrue and they only marred the country's image. "I think it (harassment of immigrant workers) could be due to the action of a handful of rogue employment agencies which took advantage of the foreigners, thus blemishing the country's image," he said. Ramamurthy alleged that as these agencies frequently dealt with government agencies, some foreigners concluded that government employees harassed them when in reality, the culprits were the rogue employment agencies. He was commenting on a statement attributed to Tenaganita executive director Irene Fernandez who recently alleged that Malaysia was unsafe for Indonesian workers as there were no specific laws to protect their welfare. The statement appeared in Indonesian newspaper, 'The Jakarta Post' on May 7. Following the statement, several non-governmental organisations, including People's Volunteer Corps, Malaysian Muslims Association and the Malaysian Economic and Social Association lodged police reports against Fernandez. They said her statement could damage the country's image and requested the authorities to take action. Kuala Lumpur CID chief Ku Chin Wah last week said the police had opened an investigation paper and might investigate the case under the Sedition Act. -- BERNAMA