Indonesians in Hong Kong

Ethnic group
group=Indonesians in Hong Kong
poptime=102,100 (2006)
popplace=Various
langs=Indonesian, Javanese, othersRadio International Singapore 2006-02-25]
rels=Islam
related=Various ethnic groups in Indonesia

Indonesians in Hong Kong, numbering 102,100, [Media Indonesia Online 2006-11-30] form the second-largest ethnic minority group in the territory, behind Filipinos. [US Dept. of State 2000: Section 5] Immigration from Indonesia to Hong Kong began as early as the 1960s, when Indonesian Chinese seeking to escape discrimination and anti-Chinese pogroms relocated to Hong Kong and Taiwan;Fact|date=February 2007 most Indonesians coming to Hong Kong today are pribumi who arrive under limited-term contracts for employment as foreign domestic helpers. Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong comprise 2.4% of all overseas Indonesian workers. [Hugo 2000: 5]

Employment

In 2006, it was estimated that 102,100 Indonesians worked in Hong Kong, [Media Indonesia Online 2006-11-30] of whom between 80 and 90% are estimated to be women; [Villalba 2005] this represents a growth of almost 250% from the 41,000 recorded six years earlier, [US Dept. of State 2000: Section 5] while during the same period, the number of domestic helpers from the Philippines declined. Some newspaper reports attributed this to the fact that Filipinas were "harder to manage", and additionally to the better training of Indonesian domestic helpers. Employment agencies in Indonesia sending workers to Hong Kong typically provide at least three to six months of training in household work, including a basic course in Cantonese, whereas similar agencies in the Philippines provide only fourteen days of training. [Pacific Business News 2004] Indonesian domestic helpers in Hong Kong are represented by two unions, the Indonesian Migrant Workers Union (IMWU) and Coalition of Indonesian Migrant Workers' Organisations (KOTKIHO, "Koalisi Organisasi Tenaga Kerja Indonesia Hong Kong"). [IMWU 2005-05-15]

According to organizations representing migrant workers, police intimidation of migrant workers is also a problem. [US Dept. of State 2000: Section 5] Underpayment of wages and employer abuse is also a problem; Indonesian workers are widely paid as little as HK$1800 to HK$2000 per month. [Media Indonesia Online 2006-11-30] [ [http://www.gaatw.net/publications/ATKI_primer_english.pdf|ATKI Primer on Illegal Salary Deductions to Indonesian Migrant Workers (IMWs) In Hong Kong] ] During the May 1998 riots in Jakarta, the Hong Kong government threatened to expel Indonesian labourers in Hong Kong in response to the Indonesian government's inaction on crimes committed against ethnic Chinese women; however, in the end, they did not act on this threat. [HRW 1998: [http://www.hrw.org/reports98/indonesia3/intro.htm Introduction] ]

Remittances and savings

Indonesians in Hong Kong send remittances less frequently than Indonesians in Japan and Singapore, or Filipinos in Hong Kong; [Orozco 2005: 15] they were also somewhat less likely than Filipinos to use a bank to send such remittances, instead relying on friends or other informal networks such as hawala. [Orozco 2005: 24] Contrary to the trend in Latin America, where remittances from relatives working in the United States are often used to meet daily expenses or for other consumption, [Wall Street Journal 2006-11-01] in one 2005 survey, more than half of Indonesian workers in Hong Kong reported that their families used their remittances to start businesses, each creating between one and five jobs. [Villalba 2005]

ee also

* Demographics of Indonesia

References

ources

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* cite news|title=Ribuan BMI di Hong Kong Protes Standar Gaji (Thousands of Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong protest pay standard)|date=2006-11-30|publisher=Media Indonesia Online|url=http://www.media-indonesia.com/berita.asp?id=117917|accessdate=2006-12-26

Notes

www.imwuinhk.multiply.com

Further reading

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External links

* [http://www.indohk.com/ Indonesians in Hong Kong]