Indonesia: Where Moms Go Abroad To Work, Leaving Kids Behind

If We Hold On Together by Riza Nugraha

Wanasaba, in Indonesia’s East Lombok, is called a “motherless village.” As the BBC reports, many young mothers travel abroad to work, leaving their children in the care of other family members.

Then women head to Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Singapore. They work as domestic helpers and nannies, earning far more than they could in Indonesia.

All the moms who work overseas do so because it affords the opportunity to provide for their children. But the work comes at a price.

Maintaining relationships with the children left behind can be difficult. One child interviewed did not see her mother at all from the age of 1 until she nearly finished primary school. Additional stress can occur when moms return with “souvenir children” from relationships (consensual and not).

-KitJ