M'sia should return illegal migrant workers after polls: Jakarta

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Indonesia today said it was unwilling to accept a planned return by Malaysia of up to 700,000 illegal Indonesian migrant workers until after its Sept 20 presidential elections.

The move follows warnings from Jakarta last week that a Malaysian drive to deport illegal workers before or during the election period could hurt bilateral relations.

Acting welfare minister Malik Fajar told journalists that talks were underway to postpone any repatriations until after Sept 20, when Indonesia holds a final round of voting to elect its president.

"We do not want to add more load to the already heavy load," Fajar said, referring to the burden of organising one of the world's largest democratic events.

Malaysia, which has yet to respond to Indonesia's demands, earlier this month announced it planned a major new crackdown on illegal immigrants which could see more than a million people detained and deported.

Fajar said the government would set up a taskforce to handle issues including repatriations from Malaysia, as well as carrying out checks on foreigners working in Indonesia to ensure they have the proper documents.

"The national intelligence agency has reported that they (foreigners working without proper documents and permits) number quite a lot," Fajar said without giving a figure.



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