When the Malaysian government announced the amnesty programme for the illegal workers in Malaysia to surrender and return home without fear of prosecution, a key partner in the exercise, the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, failed to perform its role effectively.

Diplomats at the embassy seemed to have took the amnesty programme for granted and did not make any effort to help their fellow citizens who came into Malaysia illegally.

The embassy's pre-amnesty preparation was only to focus on the recruitment of 'appointed brokers' to help provide the illegal workers with documentary and travel arrangement services. Some of these brokers were flown in from Indonesia under tourist passes. They left the country without leaving any footprint of corruption at the embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

These appointed brokers had direct access to the embassy's head of counselors. The official rate for single journey travel document was RM40 but the appointed brokers charged as high as RM150 on the first three days of the amnesty.

As Hari Raya Aidil Fitri approached, the rate charged by the appointed brokers, also known as 'calo', dropped to RM90.

Air and sea travel tickets for the illegal workers to return home also skyrocketed. Many cost at least 250 percent above the official prices. The only fare which could not be manipulated by these brokers was the one charged by the Indonesian Navy - RM100 for a one-way journey.

Indonesian embassies have a constitutional obligation to protect Indonesians abroad regardless of their status in the host nation. But the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur has instead fully exploited the local situation for their personal gain.

In the whole process of the recent Malaysian amnesty programme, the embassy totally ignored their role as the representative of Indonesian Republic to help their unfortunate citizens.

Not a single officer from the embassy took the initiative to visit the settlements in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor that accommodate more than 100,000 illegal Indonesian workers who work in the construction, food services and plantation sectors.

It is hoped that Wisma Putra would question the Indonesian Embassy on their motives and non-cooperation in the amnesty programme. It would seem that the initiative by the Malaysian government wasn't taken seriously at all by the embassy.

Wisma Putra could not have intervened in the exploitation by the 'calo' in charging excessively for the Indonesian travel documents but nevertheless it should be noted that this blatant overcharging had deterred many illegal Indonesian immigrants from taking up the amnesty offer.

This in turn effectively destroyed the good faith granted by the Abdullah Ahmad Badawi administration.

We wonder if Wisma Putra would be bold enough to take the Indonesian Embassy to task on this matter. We also question the lack of police enforcement which emboldened the 'calo' to conduct their illegal activities outside Indonesian Embassy compound at Jalan Tun Razak..

Some of the Indonesian illegal immigrants correctly believed that the Malaysian administration would extend the amnesty , thus they are in no hurry to return home. Besides, they have no money to go home as a very large number of them who had worked here have not been paid their wages.

They would rather be caught for overstaying and face the punishment as they then will be given free board and lodging.

There is no easy solution to the problem of illegal workers. It is a natural for people to try and make their fortunes in greener pastures. The exploitative recruitment process for legal foreign workers in Malaysia which imposes huge, unnecessary fees force the poor to use the illegal channels to come into the country.

The non-cooperation of diplomats in the Indonesian Embassy has further undermined the latest amnesty programme granted by the Malaysian government. Furthermore, illegal Indonesian workers in remote areas of the country have never been informed of this or past amnesty programmes.

It is timely for us to question the motives of the Indonesian Embassy when dealing with Indonesian illegal workers in Malaysia.