Jakarta – A rumor that millions of Chinese workers are being allowed into Indonesia has irked President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo so much he has asked the National Police to pursue and arrest those spreading it.
Jokowi said that currently only about 21,000 Chinese nationals are working in Indonesia, not the 10 million the rumor has claimed.
"This is under the authority of the police, but the rumor monger should be arrested," Jokowi said as quoted by kompas.com in an event in Karawang, West Java, on Friday.
He said 10 million was not the number of Chinese workers in Indonesia, but the number of tourist visits the government wants from China. "If they do not have the data, they should not spread it [the rumor]. It deceived society and it was irritating," Jokowi said.
The President said the number of Chinese workers in Indonesia was still smaller than the number of Indonesian workers in other countries such as Malaysia and Hong Kong, where there were 2 million and 153,000, respectively.
He said foreign workers would be unlikely come to Indonesia to work. "They will not come to work here, which offers lower wages. I convey this with a hope that the rumor would not spread further," he said. (saf/ebf)