IMA HK Chapter formed: Strengthening the Voice of. Migrants in Hong Kong

Transcription

1 News DigestD APMM Monthly Newsletter of the (APMM) April 2011 IMA HK Chapter formed: Strengthening the Voice of Migrants in Hong Kong For many years, many have spoken in our behalf. Now, we can speak for ourselves. Delegates of 18 affiliate organiza ons represen ng different na onali es and seven ins tu ons as associate members reaffirmed this commitment on 24 April this year on the occasion of the forma on of the Hong Kong Chapter of the Interna onal Migrants Alliance (IMA) at the Li Hall of St. John s Cathedral in Central. IMA chairperson Eni Lestari reiterated the significance of the IMA as the firstever global alliance of grassroots migrant organiza ons and their advocates leading the interna onal migrant movement in championing the rights of migrants and challenging the con nuing commodifica on of migrant labor. Founded in June 2008, IMA has a membership of 116 organiza ons coming from the U.S., Canada, Asia and the Pacific, Middle East, Europe, La n America and Africa. Rey Asis from the IMA Secretariat gave a report on the issues that the IMA has spoken out on in the past three years. Some of them are: the condemna on on the arrest and harassment of refugee ac vists in Indonesia (2009); calling the Thailand government to immediately halt its planned crackdown on undocumented migrants (2010); calling Malaysian government to stop inhuman whipping or torturing migrant workers (2009); calling on the South Korean government to stop its crackdown, harassment and assault of migrant workers, both undocumented and documented as well as on the con nued harassment and in mida on of Migrant Trade Union (2009-present); condemna on of the brutal massacre of the 72 undocumented migrants in Tamaulipas, Mexico (2010); and suppor ng the campaign to give permanent residence to Prof. Jose Maria Sison, a member of the IMA-affiliated FREN (or Filipino Refugees in the Netherlands). Eman Villanueva, United Filipinos in Hong Kong secretary general and one of the spokespersons of the Asian Migrants Coordina ng Body (AMCB), explained that the establishment of the IMA-HK Chapter was necessary to further expand the IMA membership and influence in Hong Kong. Hong Kong hosts one of the biggest numbers of IMA members in one country/area. Included among them IMA HK Chapter, go to p. 2

2 2 News Digest April 2011 Interfaith Dialogue on the Situation of Migrants in HK The last part of the Interfaith Dialogue on the Well-being of Diaspora (Migrant Workers) in Hong Kong was held on April 12, 2011 in Kowloon Union Church. Two migrant-serving ins tu ons, Hong Kong Jus ce and Peace Commission of Catholic Diocese and Mission for Migrant Workers and a grassroots migrant organiza ons composed the panel. They were Jackie Hung (HKJP) and Cynthia Abdon-Tellez (MFMW) and Eni Lestari of the Associa on of Indonesian Migrant Workers in Hong Kong (ATKI-Hong Kong). Eni Lestari of ATKI shared about the increasing number of Indonesian domes c workers and how they are vic mized by the connivance of the Indonesian government and recruitment agencies in extrac ng exorbitant fees from them. She also explained how many of them are being prohibited by their employers to exercise their religion. Jackie Hung narrated the Interna onal Human Rights conven on pertaining to the rights of migrant workers. She gave emphasis on the poverty people experience in many developing countries and as the generator of migra on. Papal social encyclicals of the Roman Catholic From le to right: Cynthia Abdon-Tellez lez of ft the Mission sion for Migrant Workers, Jackie Hung of the Jus ce and Peace Commission mis sion of ft the HK Catholic Diocese e and Eni Lestari of the Associa on on of Indonesian ne nm Migrant Workers rs Church clearly state the role of na onali es, the Asia Migrants the church on issues of migra on. The Coordina ng Body (AMCB). HKJP, together with other churches and ins tu ons, ac vely engage on issues and concerns faced by foreign domes c workers like discrimina on and noninclusion of foreign domes c workers (FDWs) in statutory minimum wage. Cynthia Abdon-Tellez detailed the abuse and exploita on suffered by migrant workers from the me they signed the contract un l the me they work here. The HK government has also caused problems to them by effec ng laws like the two week rule, the levy and the no permanent residency status. But amidst the abuse and exploita on, Tellez said, FDWs have learned to organize themselves and find empowerment and have even established a network of migrant organiza ons of various The coopera on and solidarity that has evolved between migrant-serving ins tu ons, churches and ecumenical ins tu ons and migrant organiza ons through the interfaith dialogue gave understanding not only for churches and ins tu ons on the concrete situa on of migrant workers and how religious differences aggravate the situa on but also for local people and employers. Concluding the panel, the APMM shared about the Interfaith Network for the Rights of Migrants (INFORM), a network of different faith communi es from the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Nepal that unified themselves in protec ng and upholding the rights of migrant workers. IMA HK Chapter, from p. 1 are some of the biggest grassroots organiza ons of migrant workers like the AMCB, United Filipinos in Hong Kong, Abra Tinguian Ilocano Society, Cordillera Alliance, Filipino Migrant Workers Union, PILAR (Indonesian Alliance Against Overcharging), GAMMI (alliance of religious & ethnic Indonesian migrant groups), plus leading advocate organiza ons. The forma on of the IMA-HK Chapter was also a venue for the member organiza ons to approve resolu ons that would be submi ed during the IMA s 2nd General Assembly to be held on July 3-5 in Manila, Philippines. Specifically, it was resolved that the IMA members will campaign and lobby the respec ve governments of the countries where they are based to support the passage of a pro-worker and pro-migrant ILO Conven on on Domes c Workers Rights. This is in prepara on for the Interna onal Labor Organiza on s (ILO) 100th Session of the Interna onal Labor Conference (ILC) to be held in Geneva in June 1-17, 2011 that is expected to pass the ILO Conven on on Decent Work for Domes c Workers. The delegates also approved a resolu on par cular to HK like opposing the Two-Week Rule that prac cally overrules the ILO and UN conven ons for the protec on of migrant workers rights and welfare. A unique resolu on to cover HK domes c workers issues on the statutory minimum wage, working hours regula ons, statutory rest day(s) and annual leave was also approved.

3 On April 17, 2011, the convener group of Promo on of Church People s Response- Hong Kong Chapter (PCPR Hong Kong Chapter) organized the Kalbaryo ng Migranteng Pilipino, a liturgical service depic ng the sufferings of Jesus Christ at the cross and its parallelism with difficul es and sufferings faced by many migrant workers. News Digest April Likening themselves in the Suffering of Jesus Christ HK Migrants hold Lent liturgical service Divided in four scenes beginning with the betrayal of Judas Iscariot and the arrest of Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, his trial and finally his crucifixion in Golgotha and resurrec on. The Kalbaryo ng Migranteng Pilipino or KMP drew similari es to this biblical narra on in the book of Ma hew. Filipino choirs from different churches, like the DPCF Choir, Philippine Independent Church Choir and the Kowloon Union Church Filipino Fellowship Choir, par cipated and rendered songs during the service. During the service, members of PIC recited the passion of Jesus Christ while the Likha Filipino Migrant Cultural Organiza on drama zed the hardship of the domes c helpers in Hong Kong brought about by lack of jobs and opportuni es and poverty in the Philippines. The succeeding accounts of the KMP likened Jesus to the ordeal experienced by the Filipino migrant workers from its very own Philippines government, the modern-day Judas and Pon us Pilate. The KMP ended with a hopeful message, as with the resurrec on of Jesus Christ - for Filipino Migrant workers in Hong Kong to con nue organizing themselves and resis ng the abuse, exploita on and viola on of their rights as workers. They long to go back home to their families in the Philippines while par cipa ng in ac ons to make the Philippine government accountable to its people rather foreign economic interests. They believe that by doing so, they contribute in preven ng the Exodus and forced migra on of millions of Filipinos abroad. The Promo on for Church People s Response (PCPR) is a faith-based organiza on of priests, pastors, nuns, and lay people working in the churches believing that Chris an Faith is an impetus for social change and churches should take ac on and par cipate in the people s struggle. APMM holds forum on ASEAN with Indo groups As part of the program to take advocacy on ASEAN to the grassroots, the Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants held a forum with representa ves of various Indonesian groups in Jakarta last March 21. Around 15 people a ended the discussion represen ng organiza ons of migrants, workers, peasants, youth, students and women. The discussion focused on the situa on of region in rela on to the global context as well as the current developments in the ASEAN. In par cular, focus was given on the developments in the process of coming out with an agreement on migrant workers in the region. A er the sharing on ASEAN, a brief discussion on campaign and advocacy was also conducted. Lessons on conduc ng and sustaining campaigns in Hong Kong were shared to the groups present. The forum and sharing were then followed by a planning session for the ASEAN People s Speak Out on the Rights of Migrants that shall serve as the launching of the Migrant s Caravan on ASEAN.

4 4 News Digest April 2011 A Marriage Migrant s life story : Where can I look for the happy family? by Lola Chih-Hsien Huang 黃芷嫻 Beau ful flowers blooming and the gentle wind blowing in spring. This is the meaning of Wan s name. However, the spring of her life did not come as she expected. This is her story. Where is my home? <My family is really likeable> My family is really likeable, snug, happy and well-being. Brothers and sisters are good-tempered, and parents are kind. Although there is no large hall, summer is cool and winter is warm. Lovely family, I cannot leave you. The grace you give me is higher than sky. Wan is a marriage migrant from Mainland China. In Spring 2002, she got married to a Hong Kong local and went to Hong Kong for the first me through a Two-Way Permit last Her concept of a happy and contented family life was immediately sha ered when she finally met her husband s family. She was not considered as a member of his family but treated more like an outsider. She was considered a nuisance - simply occupying space in the already cramped household of her husband s family and an added expense. Even her sister in-law talked to her with disfavor, Who wants to have children with you and who is responsible for your living expenses? As an outsider, the joy of a newborn baby could not fill up the chasm between Wan and her husband s family. In 2005, Wan brought her baby to reunite with her husband s family in HK. But instead of receiving joy and gladness, she suffered more bites of sarcasm. These were the words she got from them: Your family has a big house in Guangdong yet you don t want to live there and you would like to live in such a small place here instead. and How many days more before you leave us? To complete the family, she sacrifices herself There are so many stories Wan can tell about her family life. Her stories highlight the sufferings and grief experienced by many Mainland Chinese marriage migrants. Wan did all the household chores like cooking, cleaning and child rearing. Yet she s ll suffered blames and even her baby was not spared. My kid always slept and woke up early in the morning. Because of this, my husband s familiy complained as the baby was too noisy, she said. They told me to stop my baby from crying and they always considered me at fault as it bothered their sleep. Wan had no choice but to bring her baby out and wait for them to wake up and go out in the morning. I never had breakfast because I would always be blamed for stealing from them if I took food from the kitchen. One me, I took two cakes out because I was too hungry. When they found out, they got mad and rebuked me, Wan said. Giving your heart only to be rejected Wan found work at a clothing factory. When she gave birth, she asked her mother-in-law to take care of her son. She was rejected. Why should I take care of your child? You gave birth to him so you should take care of him, was what her mother-in-law said to her. Everyday, she endured bad words from her and her family and she was always threatened to have her husband divorce her.

5 News Digest April However, every word the social worker told her severely pounded her heart. It is your business to be with your family, and you need to resolve it yourself, the social worker told her. If you cannot endure or handle that, you should go back to your home country. Wan got angry, I had no choice but to come here, my household registra on was canceled already due to the One Way Permit I got. I can go back home if I wanted to. But I can t. I must survive here and work hard for my husband and child. You are not helping me by saying all these words to me. The social worker finally advised her to apply for legal aid but she had to do it all by herself. Sadly, luck was not on Wan s side. When she was busy mee ng with her lawyer during that me, her health worsened and she lost her job. Wan could not find a job for two years. Life is not as wonderful as I imagined Wan was at a deadlock. It was difficult to find a job while taking care of her kid. However, if she did not get a job to support her family, she would be accused of being a freeloader. I do all the household chores, buy my own food, try to accept the only place they could offer but they s ll treat me like this? I do have abili es and energy to work and earn money and to support my family only if they could help me to take care of my child, Wan could hardly contain her emo ons. When she told this to her mother-inlaw, this was what she got: That is your business! It is your decision to marry my son. I will oblige my son to divorce you if you say that again. Is there a sunny day? When Wan finally thought that all the disputes between her and her husband s families can be ended if she and her husband lived on their own, she was wrong. The place she moved into was owned by her husband s son of a previous marriage. Everyday, according to Wan, his husband s son would open their room and examine their things. They were also being monitored everyday. Wan finally found a job as a caregiver. but this took toll on her health. Due to dual responsibili es of house-caring and suppor ng her family s economic needs, her body gradually weakened. It also affected her greatly when her husband refused to work and chose to drink instead. Every me, her husband would go home drunk and turn on the radio or TV extremely loud. If Wan reminded him to turn down the volume, he would go into a violent fit and curse her. Eventually, Wan and her son suffered phyical violence. Her mother-in-law also blamed her for what was happening to her husband. But Wan laid no blame on him. She reasoned out: He was used to living with his family in the past and he hasn t adapted yet to live with me. Can t you endure that? Go back to China! Wan could not endure the physical and psychological torture so she looked for a social worker to assist her. The image of My family is really likeable is gradually dying out in Wan s mind with the intensifica on of family conflict in her life. Her marriage that is under all kinds of difficul es and tortures finally ended in divorce. She has to find work to support her now 6-year-old son. I didn t know anything before I came here. The video we watched at home always showed that HK is nice - that it is easy to earn money and find a job. But when I came here, I found out that I was wrong. I was really wrong, Wan sadly said. Overcome the difficul es Wan has faced all the challenges in her life. She has shouldered her family s well-being and the burdens of social discrimina on. But she knows that she had no right to say no unless she decided to get out from the farce of her life. What I got from Wan is that Mainland Chinese marriage migrants are brave and strong. Now, Wan ac vely par cipates in volunteer ac vi es and rips off the false tag of no contribu on by her prac cal ac ons. Wan hopes that she can help more marriage migrants who hide in the social corner but need support and assistance.

6 6 A Message from Renske Van Milink APMM Intern from The Netherlands Bidding Farewell to a Very-Loved Family News Digest April 2011 And now the end is near I have been in Hong Kong for almost four months but it is unfortunate that it is almost me to leave. I only have a couple of days le here and I need to start packing and wrapping up my project. I will eventually also need to say goodbye to many people even though I hope it will be a see you again! in many cases. This experience has been great and I have defini vely learned a lot. I have for instance by now developed an eye for iden fying (and dis nguishing) Filipino and Indonesian migrant workers. Interes ngly, I feel somehow connected to both of them and I have o en found myself automa cally star ng conversa ons with migrant women that I randomly meet at parks and other public places that I visit. When I first arrived in Hong Kong, one of the most striking things to me was the amount of people on the streets and the fact that locals tend to address and approach you only very occasionally. Nevertheless, on my first day at the office I found out that APMM was mostly staffed by Filipinos who, on the contrary, will joke APMM NEWS DIGEST is a publication of the (APMM) - Research, Documentation and Publication Program. Its offi ce is located at: (APMM) No. 2 Jordan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR Tel. No: (852) ; Fax No: (852) apmm@hknet.com Website: Any reproduction or lifting of articles herein is allowed only when due recognition of sources is given. Editorial Team: Ramon Bultron, Noy Natividad, Aaron Ceradoy, Buhay Bangcawayan Contributors: Vicky Casia-Cabantac, Janet Saguiped-Carnay, Pastor Joram Calimutan, Rey Asis with you and make you laugh within five minutes a er you entered the room. These last few weeks I have spent a lot of me on having a few last good glimpses of the city and especially on working on the report that will be published in a couple of weeks. Indeed, a er almost four months in Hong Kong I think I have collected a lot of informa on and my research is now complete but I s ll need to write everything down. I hope the report will be beneficial and meet the expecta ons of those who know about it and are looking forward to reading it. In any case, I want to express my immense gra tude to those who contributed to the project, either by helping me with the distribu on of the ques onnaires, showing me the different training programs, agreeing to par cipate in the focus group discussions or giving me ps and advices. Without any of this input my project could never have been finished! I am very happy with my work and I greatly enjoyed ge ng to know the Filipino culture and food (the pancit was always delicious!). I will defini vely miss my colleagues from the Philippines - they are so o en happy and smiling. Rumor has it that the Filipinos are the most happy and gullible people. I have li le doubt that this is not just a rumor. Countless mes I have been amused by and laughed with them. Thank you for your support. Salamat, my friends! Mexican legislators pass law to protect undocumented migrants On April 28, Mexican lawmakers unanimously approved a law to protect migrant workers regardless of their status. The law would allow migrants to have access to health services, educa on and even due process and the jus ce system without fear of being ques oned on their immigra on status. According to the said law, undocumented migrants cannot be detained for more than 36 hours. The law came in the light of cri cisms hurled against the Mexican government for failing to protect thousands of migrants coming to Mexico. Most of these migrants come from Central America. Without any protec on, the migrants face various abuses and cases of violence, some of which are rape, kidnapping, murder, and trafficking. According to the Amnesty Interna onal, some public officials are even involved in these crimes. The most recent a ack on migrants was the brutal massacre of the 72 undocumented migrants in Tamaulipas.