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Focus on Migrant Workers

A migrant worker is defined by the "United Nations Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families" as a person, who is to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a State of which he or she is not a national."

Political, social and economic upheaval has caused the number of migrant workers in the region to grow in Southeast Asia in recent decades, in particular in the Greater Mekong region, which consists of migrant sending, receiving and transit countries. Economic hardship and poverty is a major driver behind the movement of migrant workers in the region. Civil strife, insecurity or persecution arising from discrimination also all contribute to the flow of migrant workers. Access to health care, housing and services for migrant workers are often unsatisfactory, if available at all. Low incomes, high rents and housing shortages, the size of migrants' families, government policies which do not recognize migrant workers and prejudice in the community are some of the factors which result in serious human rights abuses against migrant workers. SEARCH seeks to work with partner organizations in the region to strengthen their capacity to work with this often marginalized sector of people.


What SEARCH is Doing

On May 12, 2009, after two years of intensive consultations, the TF-AMW formally proposed its detailed civil society ASEAN Framework Instrument for the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers to the ASEAN Secretariat and the ASEAN Senior Labour Officials Meeting (SLOM) during their meeting in Vientiane, Lao PDR.

The purpose of the TF-AWM national and regional consultations has been to garner inputs to develop ASEAN civil society's contribution to the ASEAN regional framework on the protection and promotion of the rights of migrant workers. The four sections in the TF-AMW civil society ASEAN Instrument on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers are:

  1. Obligations of Labour Receiving Countries: Key recommendations include ensuring that migrant workers are treated in accordance with the core labour standards of the ILO by according "national treatment" to migrant workers in terms of wages and conditions of work, and instituting standard contracts for hiring migrant workers throughout the region.
  2. Obligations of Labour Sending Countries: These obligations are understood to include effective pre-departure training systems and programs.
  3. Joint Obligations of Labour Sending and Labour Receiving States: Among the areas where action is recommended are effective regulation of labour recruitment agencies, institution of practical and effective grievance systems that can be used by migrant workers, development of schemes to facilitate the migration of skilled labourers and recognition of their skills, effective suppression of human trafficking, and creation of easy-to-access systems to facilitate transfer of workers' remittances and provide safe institutions where migrant workers can save their money.
  4. Commitments by ASEAN: The Instrument explores some of the possibilities for future ASEAN systems to protect migrant workers, such as an ASEAN worker ID, hotline, and portable insurance. The Instrument also recommends the creation of a Subcommittee on the Rights of Migrant Workers operating under the supervision of AICHR. The Instrument lays out systems that could be further developed by ASEAN to manage the responsibility (set out in the ASEAN Declaration on Migrant Workers) for mutual cooperation among ASEAN countries in assisting migrant workers from ASEAN when they are working in countries outside of Southeast Asia.

SEARCH support to the UNIAP/COMMIT process has resulted in tangible results for victims of human trafficking, which can summarized as follows:

  1. Regional Training and Capacity Building: Funding provided by SEARCH supports the delivery of Regional Training Programs as well as national training programs, and specialised training in areas of need. Examples of training programs that took place during this reporting period include the following:
    • Cambodia: A national training course on human trafficking for government officials was held in Oddor Meanchey province during October 2009. A total of 45 people took part in this training.
    • Lao PDR: During November 2009, child-safe training was delivered to tourism industry workers, including hotel staff, tuk tuk and taxi drivers, to help combat and prevent the sexual exploitation of children. Two Human Trafficking Case Analysis Workshops for government officials responsible for the prosecution of traffickers and protection of victims, were held during October and November 2009.
    • Vietnam: Capacity building for border guard officers who receive and support trafficking victims, took place during November 2009. In the same month, shelter and victim hotline staff received training on case management and counseling. In December 2009 the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs hosted a workshop to discuss the effectiveness of services for returned victims of trafficking.
    • Regional: Following the publication of the UNIAP Guide to Ethics and Human Rights in Counter-Trafficking, UNIAP regional technical staff delivered ethics training in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, with China and Cambodia to follow in mid-2010. The training included an overview of the guide and the ethical guidelines contained within, scenario activities, role plays, videos, questionnaires and evaluation.
  2. National Plans of Action (NPAs): Every year, the governments of the six Mekong countries develop National Plans of Action, which set out proposed counter-trafficking activities and outcomes as well as the areas of responsibility for each government and non-government organisation.
  3. Multilateral and bilateral partnerships: Funding from SEARCH assists in the development of multilateral and bilateral partnerships to help prevent and address human trafficking. UNIAP has provided technical support to the governments of Cambodia, China, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia to help put these agreements in place.
  4. Legal frameworks, law enforcement, and justice: With support from SEARCH, UNIAP has worked to strengthen law enforcement responses to human trafficking and help governments develop national legal frameworks that 1) Criminalise trafficking, 2) Provide for appropriate penalties, 3) Protect victims, 4) Support witnesses, and 5) Create the widest possible jurisdiction.
  5. Victim protection: UNIAP is assisting the governments of each of the Mekong countries to establish victim identification procedures that are efficient and transparent, and to raise the level and quality of victim support services.