Indonesia seeks progress for migrant rights at the UN Race Summit

            Indonesia advocated tougher global anti-discrimination measures - aimed at helping millions of its migrant workers – at a UN summit on racism in Geneva on Tuesday. The Foreign Ministry’s director general for multilateral affairs, Rezlan Ishar Jenie, said Indonesia hoped to see countries commit to stronger anti-discrimination measures, especially in light of the global financial crisis, which has caused mass layoffs and reductions in the foreign workers’ quota.

            “We are seeking an increasing global willingness to address the complaints of migrant workers, especially those employed in the domestic sector. We want a transparent complaint-filing mechanism that facilitates anti-discrimination toward migrant workers that also addresses unlawful treatment by employers,” he said in a press statement Wednesday. Rezlan said Indonesia also wanted better cooperation to help combat people smuggling. The archipelagic state has become a hub as well as a transit point for people smuggling.

            The four-day summit, which kicked off Monday, has been undermined by the boycott of

eight countries, including the United States and Australia, over disputes about a 16-page declaration they claimed indirectly singled out Israeli violence toward Palestine.

            Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s speech on Monday, describing Israel as a “ a cruel and repressive regime”, also prompted a walkout by European diplomats.

            The Foreign Ministry’s director of human rights, Wiwiek Setyawati, said Indonesia had raised the issue of human rights over of its migrant workers, in the summit dominated by conflict in the Middle East, to draw attention to the vulnerability of migrant workers in tough economic times. “We want host countries to respect the rights of migrant workers and ensure proper documentation and anti-discrimination measures. We can’t deny that many migrants work illegally, but this should not be seen as an excuse to annul their rights.”

            Wiwiek said the conference should not be undermined by the absence of some major powers who objected to Iran’s views on the Middle Eastern conflict as the summit was a multilateral forum where “polarization was unavoidable”. Indonesia has lent its support to Palestine during its conflict with Israel, supporting the principle of anti-colonization and sovereignty. Although home to a large Muslim majority, Indonesia said support for the Palestinian cause did not come from “religious sentiment”, instead saying the administration was aware of Iran’s views on the conflict.

            The summit, attended by delegations from around 90 countries, has also outlawed any actions that may trigger racial or religious hatred. Under the principle of free speech, some Western countries, including the Netherlands, have allowed their citizens to publish materials with strong religious sentiments that have been accused of inciting religious hatred.