He told the Dewan Rakyat the temporary freeze on all Indonesian workers entering Malaysia was due to confusion on the recruitment mechanism of labourers from the republic.
Saravanan said there was no freeze on Indonesian workers entering Malaysia but that it was just a temporary “postponement”.
“The matter was discussed during a committee meeting involving both the human resources and home ministries yesterday.
“The committee agreed that a discussion should be held between both ministries, the immigration department, and the Indonesian ambassador (Hermono) immediately to resolve this confusion.”
He was replying to a question from Loke Siew Fook (PH-Seremban), who asked the minister to explain why Putrajaya had failed to adhere to the conditions outlined in the MoU, which led to the freeze.
On July 13, Hermono said Jakarta had imposed a temporary freeze on all Indonesian workers entering Malaysia.
He said it was due to the immigration department’s continued use of the MOS to facilitate the recruitment of Indonesian maids instead of the One Channel System (OCS), as agreed to in the MoU signed between the two countries in April.
Under the MOS, Indonesian workers may enter the country using a tourist visa before applying for a work permit. Jakarta wants this practice to end due to the risk of forced labour that Indonesian citizens face.
Saravanan said it was agreed during yesterday’s meeting that Malaysia would integrate the MOS and OCS to help Indonesia monitor the status of its citizens working here.
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