SECRETARY General of the Central Executive Board of the Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association (BPP Hipmi) Dr Anggawira spoke regarding the criticism of the Indonesian Migrant Worker Protection Agency (BP2MI) regarding restrictions on imported goods. Anggawira said that Minister of Trade Regulation (Permendag) Number 36 of 2023 regarding policies and regulations on imports of goods is actually very beneficial for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
The presence of this regulation, according to Anggawira, aims to protect domestic products, including local MSME products. “Indeed, care needs to be taken in its implementation so as not to harm Indonesian migrant workers who are also foreign exchange earners for the country,” he said in an official statement.
Anggawira’s statement was in response to a viral video showing a number of imported goods belonging to Indonesian migrant workers (PMI) being stuck in Semarang. In the video, BP2MI Chairman Benny Rhamdani said that the Minister of Trade Regulation was considered a burden on PMI.
According to Benny, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC) is often accused of making things difficult for migrant workers when they want to send goods to Indonesia. In fact, explained Benny, DJBC is only the implementer of the Minister of Trade Regulation.
In fact, Benny also said that imported goods from Indonesian migrant workers were threatened with being destroyed as a result of the Minister of Trade Regulation. Anggawira explained that Minister of Trade Regulation 36/2023 which was criticized by the Chairman of BP2MI was the result of an inter-ministerial meeting which was held in October 2023 at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta.
If there are regulations that impact Indonesian workers (TKI) abroad, according to him, BP2MI will definitely be involved in the meeting. Even so, whether involved or not, the Head of BP2MI as a government official should understand the rules of this cross-ministerial decision.
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Anggawira said that BP2MI should understand that these regulations were not only decided by the Ministry of Trade led by Zulkifli Hasan. “BP2MI should understand that this decision is not the decision of just one minister. Indeed, the person who signed it was Mr. Zulkifli Hasan as Minister of Trade, but that is in accordance with his main duties,” explained Anggawira.
Anggawira continued that the regulations regarding migrant workers’ baggage were also not just a proposal from the Ministry of Trade. “So BP2MI through Mr. Benny should understand things like correcting cross-K/L policies,” he explained.
Anggawira invites all parties to be wiser in responding to this rule. According to him, if a polemic like this continues, it could certainly disrupt the course of the Indonesian economy through exports and imports.
“We hope that there will be communication from BP2MI with related agencies, including the Director General of Customs and Excise regarding implementation in the field. This must be done so that there is no protracted polemic which could later be counterproductive for the government,” he said. (Z-2)
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