Indonesian elections
Indonesia is to hold its presidential and legislative elections on Wednesday next week. Of the 187 million eligible voters, 2 million live abroad.
According to data from Indonesia’s National Agency for the Protection and Placement of International Migrant Workers, Taiwan is second only to Malaysia — and ahead of Hong Kong and Singapore — as a destination for Indonesians working overseas.
Data from the Ministry of Labor show that Indonesian workers in Taiwan — almost 200,000 — are concentrated in the social-welfare sector, mainly as caregivers and maids in private households. They work long hours, but are not given the weekly time off specified in the Labor Standards Act (勞動基準法). Instead, time off depends entirely on an agreement between the employee and the employer.
This is why the Indonesian Economic and Trade Office to Taipei is sending a letter to employers asking that they allow Indonesian employees to take a day off on Sunday to vote. There are two ways that Indonesian workers abroad can vote: by mail or at 34 appointed Indonesian shops, restaurants and prayer rooms. Allowing Indonesians to exercise their civic rights is a sign of respect for democratic values and systems around the world.
The positive evolution of Indonesia’s democracy over the past few decades is clear for all to see. Indonesia ranks among the highest of Southeast Asian countries in both Freedom House’s annual Freedom in the World survey and the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index.
This is especially impressive when one considers that barely two decades have passed since the dissolution of then-Indonesian president Suharto’s dictatorship in 1998. Indonesia’s path to democracy shares many similarities with Taiwan and proves that democracy is absolutely compatible with Asian culture.
The government’s New Southbound Policy is not just about dispersing economic risk, but also about making the public understand that Taiwanese values are much closer to Southeast Asian nations than China.
Indonesian voters are able to elect their country’s leader, their democratic representatives and freely speak their minds without fear of political restraint. This is impossible in China.
For the sake democracy of in Indonesia, Taiwan and around the world, Taiwanese employers must ensure they allow their Indonesian workers the chance to vote.
Peng Cheng-yi
Taipei
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