Wahyu Susilo

In 2000, Wahyu Susilo began championing the cause he still stands for: the rights of the estimated 4.5 million Indonesians who work overseas.

It was in 2000 that he created a network of organizations to advocate for better legislation dealing with human trafficking. Then, in 2004, he founded Migrant Care, an organization that is dedicated to fighting for the rights of migrant workers from Indonesia. For example, Mr. Susilo has actively pursued the government to strengthen their oversight of the recruitment process. The recruitment process of migrant workers, for domestic servitude in Malaysia and around Southeast Asia, is a process which is often used and abused by traffickers. His organization has personally kept records of many workers who have disappeared after taking their jobs in another country. In 2002, there was a horrific incident where Malaysia deported 350,000 undocumented migrant workers. Upon arrival in Indonesia, almost nothing was done for the people arriving. This caused 85 deaths and scores more who were injured and diseased. Mr. Susilo was able, in the aftermath of this disaster, to bring the plight of migrant workers directly into the public eye, and has continued to build and raise awareness until today.

Mr. Susilo was given the Trafficking in Persons Report Hero Award in 2007 for his efforts to combat human trafficking. Since then, he has continued to work with migrant workers in Indonesia. He was the head of the Advocacy Division of the Forum on Indonesian Development until 2012, and was a coordinator for the Global Call to Action Against Poverty from 2005 to 2008. He continues to work with the organization he founded, Migrant Care, even today.

In the 2014 TIP Report, Indonesia was listed as a Tier 2 country. It is primarily a source country, but has also been used as both a transit and a destination country. Sex trafficking occurs both internally and abroad, children are trafficked for domestic servitude and sexual purposes, and forced labor is also an issue. The government is taking steps to combat the issue, but more must be done before they will fully comply with the minimum requirements for combatting human trafficking.