TF AMW delivers the civil society proposal for the ASEAN Framework Instrument on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers
12 May 2009
Mr. Khamkhane
Phinsavanh
Chairman, Asean
Senior Labour Officials Meeting (SLOM)
Director-General,
Labour Management Department
Ministry of Labour
and Social Welfare
Dear
Director-General Khamkhane,
The Task Force on
Asean Migrant Workers (TF-AMW) has the great honour to present to you today the
Asean civil society Framework Instrument on the Protection and Promotion of the
Rights of Migrant Workers for the consideration of the
The TF-AMW strongly
supports the commitment of Asean to fully implement the Asean Declaration on
the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers and pledges to
continuously engage with Asean as partners on all efforts to bring the promise
of the Declaration to full fruition. We view the appointment of an
Instrument drafting committee by the Asean Committee on Migrant Workers (ACMW)
as yet another positive indication of the dedication of the Asean Member States
to substantively address the need for greater protections for migrant
workers. We support the timely drafting of the Instrument by the ACMW and
give you our assurance that we will actively participate and engage in this
process.
As Asean moves
towards its goal of economic integration by 2015, it is both important and
timely that these processes of protection for migrant workers are now moving
rapidly forward. We believe that a mutually beneficial agreement can be
reached between the labour sending and labour receiving nations of Asean which
will ensure that migrant workers are given a fair deal which includes respect
for their rights and effective protective mechanisms, in accordance with
the vision of Asean as a sharing and caring community in which all persons are
valued.
The TF-AMW supports
an Instrument that encompasses all migrant workers, regardless of documented or
undocumented status, sector of work (i.e. informal work and domestic work), or
origin. We also recognise that migrant workers often have children and
other family members accompanying them, and note that all Asean Governments
have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and Convention
on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (Cedaw). Therefore, we
respectfully submit that all migrant workers and their families should be
covered by the forthcoming Instrument. The TF-AMW views that the
alternative -- which would be an agreement that essentially divides migrant
workers into groups of people who are protected and people who are not
protected -- is a recipe for confusion and a regulatory morass that will be
compounded by the challenges of cross-border engagement to protect their
rights. The TF-AMW is of the opinion that it is far better to
craft an Instrument that offers one clear and comprehensive set of protections
to all migrant workers.
In accordance with
the Asean Charter which sets out the status of Asean as a legal organisation,
the TF-AMW believes that the final Instrument on the Protection and Promotion
of the Rights of Migrant Workers which is adopted by the Asean Governments
should be a legally binding document.
In developing the
Asean civil society Framework Instrument, which we are proposing today, the
Task Force and its national partners have attempted to develop a comprehensive
set of ideas and proposals for the consideration of the national officials of
the Asean Member Governments. We recognise that the document that we have
prepared is long and detailed but this reflects the seriousness with which we
have approached this important task to provide the best, most thorough proposal
to Asean. We entrust our work today to the Asean Senior Labour Officials
Meeting to provide to the Asean Committee on Migrant Workers (ACMW), and other
relevant national and regional bodies considering the protection of migrant
workers, and look forward to a process of continuing dialogue and engagement with
you.
With my highest
respect,
Sinapan Samydorai
Convener, Task Force
on Asean Migrant Workers
Tel: + 65 9479
1906 Fax: + 65 6425 0709
Email:
samysd@yahoo.com
Website:
www.workersconnection.org
cc: H.E. Surin
Pitsuwan, Secretary-General, Asean
National Focal Points, Asean Committee on Migrant Workers