Human Rights / Migrant Rights General

An international consultation on “Ecumenical Advocacy for the Protection of the Human Rights of Migrant Workers in the Arabian Gulf Region” is currently taking place from 29 April to 2 May at the Santhigiri Ashram in Kerala, India. The consultation was organized by the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA) of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

MAYDAY!: the universal distress call, broadcast by those on ships or planes in mortal distress, and urgently in need of assistance. MAYDAY!: a call that often comes in vain. “With 1971 boatpeople having perished in the Mediterranean Sea while trying to reach European soil from North Africa, the year 2011 sets a sad record as the deadliest year for boatpeople,” said Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) member and rapporteur Tineke Strik at the end of a hearing organised by the PACE Migration Committee in Strasbourg, 30 November.

Migration from and within Africa, just like migration elsewhere in the world, often generates anti-immigrant sentiment and ignites heated public debate about the migration policies of the destination countries. These countries include South Africa as well as others outside the continent. The countries of origin are also keen to minimize losses through “brain drain” and to capture resources such as remittances. Increasingly, international organizations and human rights advocates have stressed the need to protect the interests of migrants themselves.

The surprise execution of an Indonesian maid, Ruyati binti Sapubi, without the knowledge of the Indonesian government reflects the abominable state of migrant workers resulting from poverty in South and Southeast Asia. The inability of government to provide basic amenities to the people forces them to leave from their own country for an unknown and uncertain future. The outcry over Ruyati’s life and death highlights the problem of what is often dismissed as a private matter: the use and abuse of foreign domestic workers.