JAKARTA // In a locked unit of a run-down hospital in east Jakarta, Ikayani Arjati paced her empty cell. Her hair wildly askew, she shouted over and over again, "Allahu akbar!"
Along with 30 other women, Ms Arjati is being held in the Ebony Room at the Doctor Sukanto Police Hospital, a ward for female domestic workers who have been physically or sexually abused by foreign employers.
Her deformed and blackened ears, impaired hearing and the other scars on her body bear witness to a horrible trauma, one that she says was inflicted by her Saudi employers when they doused her with an industrial cleaning agent.
"Look at my hands, this is what they did to me. They splashed me. Look at my ear. I can't hear very well," she told a visitor.
Ms Arjati is one of the thousands of Indonesians who are cheated, beaten, raped, and tortured by their employers abroad each year, according to the government agency that oversees migrant labour.
As the biggest employers of Indonesian migrant workers, Malaysian bosses have a widespread reputation for viciousness.
But after the case of Sumiati binti Salan Mustapa, the maid who was hospitalised in Medina last autumn for treatment of burns caused by an iron, and gashes to her face and lips caused by scissors, Saudi employers are now viewed as the cruellest.
"We know that the culture in Saudi Arabia is very bad. It is a culture of slavery and they have no respect for human rights," says Anis Hidayah, executive director of Migrant Care, a non-government organization representing migrant workers.
Saudi employers were the subject of more than half of the complaints from Indonesian workers between January and June last year, said the government oversight agency, officially known as the National Board for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers.
Of the 25,064 workers who reported problems with their employers on returning to Indonesia, 13,559 - 54 per cent - had worked in Saudi Arabia, the group said. Overall, more than one million Indonesians are working legally in the Kingdom.
When Ms Mustapa's Saudi Arabian employer was initially sentenced to three years in jail, the Indonesian president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, urged publicly for tougher punishment.
The employer's acquittal on Saturday aroused public outrage. But the official response in Indonesia is likely to be restrained.
Rather than deal with the abuses with tougher regulation, the government is keen to ramp up a business that brings in an estimated US$11 billion (Dh40bn) a year to Indonesia in remittances and also returns big profits to the companies that send the women overseas.
That means that Ebony Room of the Doctor Sukanto Police Hospital will probably not be empty soon.
Although recruiting agencies and insurance companies are meant to foot the treatment bill for abused domestic workers, the facilities of the hospital, which also treats convicted terrorists and common criminals, are crude, even by local standards.
Except for the nurse's station and five cells, each equipped with bed, nightstand and a television, there is little else in the Ebony Room.
The hospital relies on donations to feed patients. A local charity supplies toiletries. There are no staff trained to deal with trauma.
Some of the women have been in the hospital for months and are desperate to leave, but the authorities strictly control not only when they are discharged but who can and cannot visit.
"Do you have a phone? I want to call my family, I want them to take me home," said Ms Arjati, rushing over to a visitor. "I'm not mad."
Several other women, skinny and marked by old wounds, ask for the same assistance.
The hospital handles only the most acute cases of abuse and trauma. All returning Indonesian overseas workers are processed by immigration officials at a terminal at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta international airport.
If it is determined that a returning worker needs treatment, he or she is transferred immediately to the facility. Admission is not optional.
All complaints of abuse are recorded and later analysed by the government's oversight agency, but follow-up on less acute problems is rare. Families and independent monitoring groups are barred access. "The government doesn't want anyone watching," said Jamaluddin Suryahadikusuma, an official with the Migrant Workers' Union (SBMI).
Authorities insist the rules are meant to prevent workers, flush with gifts and cash, from being preyed upon by criminal gangs.
"We have to sterilize the area," to prevent gangs who "go there and ask them for money," said Jumhur Hidayat, the chief of the government oversight agency.
Yet workers who have been through the terminal and non-government organisations that represent them say workers are often twice-abused - both abroad by employers and at home by profiteers.
From the porters who move their luggage to the extortionate plane and bus fares out of the terminal, and the poor exchange rates they are given by money changers, the workers are fleeced for everything in their pockets. "From the time their plane lands, they are forced to pay. It's a business mafia there," Mr Suryahadikusuma said.
Despite the risks, Indonesians continue to seek work overseas, lured by the promise of better wages. A government survey promotes overseas work with the claim that factory labourers, farmers, builders, shopkeepers or maids who earned about $50 a month in Indonesia can earn $200 a month or more overseas.
But when the promise of more money turns out false, many return overseas, attributing their bad experiences to misfortune rather than the vagaries of a largely unregulated industry.
Andrea Asard, 23, had just returned home empty-handed from Jordan after 18 months working for a verbally abusive boss who gave her no time off.
"I'm hoping that I will have a nicer boss next time," she said.
foreigndesk@thenational.ae
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The biog
Born November 11, 1948
Education: BA, English Language and Literature, Cairo University
Family: Four brothers, seven sisters, two daughters, 42 and 39, two sons, 43 and 35, and 15 grandchildren
Hobbies: Reading and traveling
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
The years Ramadan fell in May
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
SCHEDULE FOR SHOW COURTS
Centre Court - from 4pm (UAE time)
Angelique Kerber (1) v Irina Falconi
Martin Klizan v Novak Djokovic (2)
Alexandr Dolgopolov v Roger Federer (3)
Court One - from 4pm
Milos Raonic (6) v Jan-Lennard Struff
Karolina Pliskova (3) v Evgeniya Rodina
Dominic Thiem (8) v Vasek Pospisil
Court Two - from 2.30pm
Juan Martin Del Potro (29) v Thanasi Kokkinakis
Agnieszka Radwanska (9) v Jelena Jankovic
Jeremy Chardy v Tomas Berdych (11)
Ons Jabeur v Svetlana Kuznetsova (7)
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Company%20profile
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HOSTS
T20 WORLD CUP
2024: US and West Indies; 2026: India and Sri Lanka; 2028: Australia and New Zealand; 2030: England, Ireland and Scotland
ODI WORLD CUP
2027: South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia; 2031: India and
Bangladesh
CHAMPIONS TROPHY
2025: Pakistan; 2029: India
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
The%20trailblazers
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.