Indonesians in Hong Kong
| Total population |
|---|
| 102,100 (2006) |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Various |
| Languages |
| Religion |
| Related ethnic groups |
|
Various ethnic groups in Indonesia |
Indonesians in Hong Kong, numbering 102,100,[2] form the second-largest ethnic minority group in the territory, behind Filipinos.[3] 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;[citation needed] 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.[4]
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[edit] Employment
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| Demographics and Culture of Hong Kong |
| Demographics |
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Cinema · Cuisine · Manhua · Media · Music · Opera · Public holidays · Shopping · Sport · Literature |
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In 2006, it was estimated that 102,100 Indonesians worked in Hong Kong,[2] of whom between 80 and 90% are estimated to be women;[5] this represents a growth of almost 250% from the 41,000 recorded six years earlier,[3] 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",[6] 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. But agencies do not always provide adequate training. They also work together with agencies in Hong Kong to extract higher fees from Indonesians after they start working in Hong Kong. Part of this extra fee is the money that agencies pay to women in Indonesia to start the migration process.[7] 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).[8]
According to organizations representing migrant workers, police intimidation of migrant workers is also a problem.[3] 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.[2][9] 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.[10]
[edit] Remittances and savings
Indonesians in Hong Kong send remittances less frequently than Indonesians in Japan and Singapore, or Filipinos in Hong Kong;[11] 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.[12] 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,[13] 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.[5]
[edit] Religion
In 2009, there were 220,000 Muslims in Hong Kong, of Indonesians formed an estimated 120,000.[14]
Within their communities, the services provided to the Indonesian Muslims or other Muslims are mainly by NGOs. Most of the relevant NGOs will have courses to teach Arabic and the Quran. So the children or other people who are newly Muslim can learn the religion practices and languages they need. There are seven Islamic schools in Hong Kong. The Islamic NGOs mainly runs them, for example the Chinese Muslim Cultural and Fraternal Association.[15] Some of them will have membership schemes and provide services like library, retails, etc.[16] Some of the people will also gather in the Mosques during religious celebrations. They seem to be proactive in interacting with the local communities, it is because their social value and moral standards are different from Hong Kong mainstream ideology.[17]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Radio International Singapore 2006-02-25
- ^ a b c Media Indonesia Online 2006-11-30
- ^ a b c US Dept. of State 2000: Section 5
- ^ Hugo 2000: 5
- ^ a b Villalba 2005
- ^ Pacific Business News 2004
- ^ Palmer, Wayne. 2010. Costly inducements. In Inside Indonesia 100.
- ^ IMWU 2005-05-15
- ^ ATKI Primer on Illegal Salary Deductions to Indonesian Migrant Workers (IMWs) In Hong Kong
- ^ HRW 1998: Introduction
- ^ Orozco 2005: 15
- ^ Orozco 2005: 24
- ^ Wall Street Journal 2006-11-01
- ^ http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2009/en/pdf/C18.pdf
- ^ 香港穆斯林辦學一覽表http://www.islam.org.hk/?action-viewnews-itemid-5046
- ^ Islamic Union of Hong Kong-http://www.iuhk.org/
- ^ 沈旭輝, 為伊斯蘭作嚮導-http://www.books4you.com.hk/22/pages/pages13.html
[edit] Sources
- Davis, Bob (2006-11-01). "Direct Deposits: Migrants' Money Is Imperfect Cure For Poor Nations: Earnings Sent Home From U.S. Fuel Increased Spending But Not Much Investment; Thugs Extort Cash by Phone". The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116234841054209739.html?mod=todays_us_page_one. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
- Hugo, Graeme (September 2000) (PDF). Indonesian overweas contract workers HIV knowledge: A gap in information. United Nations Development Program: Southeast Asia HIV and Development Project. http://www2.unescobkk.org/hivaids/FullTextDB/aspUploadFiles/IOCWK.pdf. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
- Orozco, Manuel (November 2005) (PDF). Remittances - global opportunities for international person-to-person money transfers. Inter-American Dialogue. http://www.earth.columbia.edu/cgsd/remittances/documents/Remittances_Global_Opportunities.pdf.
- Villalba, Noel (2005). The Impact of MSAI Adult Education Programme on Poverty Reduction. Asian South Pacific Bureau of Education/Migrant Forum in Asia. http://www.iiz-dvv.de/index.php?article_id=308&clang=1. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
- "Could Indonesian maids replace Filipinas in Hong Kong?". Pacific Business News. 2004-09-07. http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2004/09/06/daily3.html. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
- Country Report on Human Rights Practices: Hong Kong. US Department of State. 2000. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2000/eap/686.htm.
- (HTML) Indonesia: The Damaging Debate on Rapes of Ethnic Chinese Women. Human Rights Watch. September 1998. http://www.hrw.org/reports98/indonesia3/index.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
- "Indonesian Consulate should fulfill its responsibility as protector of Indonesian citizens" (Press release). Indonesian Migrant Workers Union. 2005-05-15. http://www.mfasia.org/mfaStatements/Statement14-IMWU-Kothiko.html. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
- (Indonesian) "Ribuan BMI di Hong Kong Protes Standar Gaji (Thousands of Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong protest pay standard)". Media Indonesia Online. 2006-11-30. http://www.media-indonesia.com/berita.asp?id=117917. Retrieved 2006-12-26.
[edit] Further reading
- Ford, Michele (2001). "Indonesian women as export commodity: notes from Tanjung Pinang" (PDF). Labour and Management in Development Journal. http://dspace.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/41831/2/2-5-mford.pdf. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
- Sim, Amy S.C. (2004) (PDF). The Cultural Economy of Illegal Migration: Migrant Workers Who Overstay in Hong Kong. Department of Sociology, University of Hong Kong. http://www.idss-nts.org/publications/PDF/Amy_Sim.pdf. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
- "Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong". Radio International Singapore. 2006-02-25. http://www.rsi.sg/english/indonesiamediawatch/view/20060225104359/1/.html. Retrieved 2007-01-09.[dead link]
[edit] External links
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