How an activity centre helps raise awareness on trafficking dangers, safe migration and legal rights

Transcription

1 CHINA Proven Practices for Human Trafficking Prevention in the Greater Mekong Sub-region Subregion A WOMEN S REFUGE How an activity centre heps raise awareness on trafficking dangers, safe migration and ega rights THE PROVEN PRACTICE: Creating a community centre for femae migrants in destination cities and for femaes in viages who are considering migrating where they can share experiences, find information on their rights and empoyment aws, ega aid, skis training, cutura entertainment and, if need be, recourse to bad empoyment experiences. Internationa Labour Organization Activity centres for women in Yunnan province, China THE INITIAL CHALLENGE: Many of the migrating girs and women in Yunnan province tend to stay within the province, heading to the major cities, such as Kunming and Simao, for empoyment opportunities. Most migrants ook for jobs using irreguar channes, thus typicay do not obtain ega empoyment information, know where to go for hep, find an organization for support or protection or fee safe in pursuing protection when encountering bad experiences. In viages, women have had itte opportunity for coective activities or exchanging information and ideas, which means itte chance for any one individua to earn from the experiences of others or even fee a community bond. N THE RESPONSE: Map courtesy of UNIAP West Myanmar South West Kunming Lao PDR Centra Viet Nam North East Beijing South East Hong Kong Shanghai Through the Internationa Labour Organization s Mekong Subregiona Project to Combat Trafficking in Chidren and Women (ILO-TICW), the Yunnan Provincia Women s Federation has, over the period of , set up 12 Young Women Migrants City Homes (drop-in centres) in four districts with a high proportion of migrant workers in Kunming City.

2 Meeting the Cha Dream Corps CHINA They aso set up Women s Homes in 53 ocations in four rura counties in Yunnan province where many migrants are originating from, as a kind of cubhouse or community centre for viagers that doubes as a training and resource centre. Loca peope aso use the centres for cutura activities and to obtain information on migration, empoyment and income-generating activities. The Provincia Labour and Socia Security Department worked with the Provincia Agricuture Department to provide awareness raising on trafficking and safe empoyment, incuding production of videos and print materias. Officias have estabished a network among oca government, NGOs and communities for disseminating information about safe empoyment and ega rights, as we as deveoping viage skis training and microcredit faciities to famiies of young women migrants. The project is a successfu mode not ony in Yunnan Province but aso in the whoe of China, said Gu Xiuian, Vice Chairman of the Nationa Peope's Congress and President of the A-China Women s Federation after visiting the project in Sanheying Community in 2005.

3 Chaenge Meeting the Chae e THE PROCESS: In Kunming City, the Women s Federation of Wuhua and Panong districts conducted baseine anaysis and identified 3,375 femae migrants, many working in entertainment estabishments. The anaysis aso identified two communities as suitabe project sites for setting up a drop-in centre where migrants can earn about trafficking risks and abour aws and rights. With the assistance of the Women s Federation, the community estabished a eading group against trafficking, with the Community Director as the team eader and eight members. The eading group then worked on sensitizing oca government officias on the project s objectives and the probem of human trafficking. In response, the oca government officias committed to providing faciities and funding for setting up the two Young Women Migrants City Homes. In Wuhua, a spare government office was refurbished for the drop-in centre whie in Panong, space was found in a community office. The home serves as a cassroom, ibrary, mutimedia entertainment outet and ega aid service. For exampe, awyers seconded to the centres have been abe to assist a number of migrant workers in wage disputes with their empoyers. Project funding aowed for the purchase of audio and video equipment, desks, tabe, chairs and entertainment items, such as tennis tabes. Meanwhie, ILO-TICW project staff and Yunnan Provincia Labour and Socia Security Department distributed pamphets that contained information on abour rights, human and chidren s rights, and trafficking awareness to empoyees and migrants in various entertainment estabishments. They distributed questionnaires for understanding the needs of young femae migrants. And they invited them to participate in severa symposiums on preventing and combating trafficking in chidren and women, safe empoyment, the reevant aws and reguations (incuding on chid abour and rights of migrant workers) and heath issues, such as AIDS. These efforts were designed to buid a network of young migrants and to attract them to the drop-in centres. Dream Corps

4 Meeting the Cha Paua I CHINA Loca eaders attended the opening-day ceremonies of both centres. Consutants and vounteers conduct trainings and activities for young femae migrants. In viages, Women s Federation members first met with county, township and viage authorities to discuss the idea and gain their support. Foowing that, severa organizations made contributions: Viage Committees donated buidings, Agricuture and Judicia Bureaus made donations to the ibrary, and the Women s Federation took responsibiity for managing the Women s Homes. Subgroups were created through the homes to perform traveing shows (drama, sketch, comic diaogue, dance, oca baad, antiphona singing) on trafficking, gender issues, drug abuse, HIV prevention and reevant aws and reguations in communities. In some areas, the subteams conducted socia surveys with viagers to identify good and bad things taking pace, such as trafficking practices, or tricks, the schoo enroment status, gender reations and income generation. Activities such as knowedge contests on trafficking and gender equaity for chidren were organized. The services offered in the homes incuded: Training on trafficking awareness and prevention, various Chinese aws on protection of rights, abour protection, abour aws, HIV prevention, as we as agricuture and anima husbandry. Lega consuting and aid, such as hep in recovering deducted or deayed wages; Videos produced by the Provincia Empoyment Centre on migrating and empoyment information.

5 Chaenge Meeting the Chae e Free book borrowing. A venue for sociaizing, exchanging market information or experiences in improved crop cutivation or anima raising. Art and iterature performances, sports tournaments and other activities to provide creative outets and cutura ife. The homes aso created a space and attention on the need for the community to meet together and discuss how best to prevent the trafficking. OUTCOMES: 12 Young Women Migrants City Homes have been estabished in four districts with a high density of migrant workers in Kunming City, providing ega and socia support services to femae migrants in need. 53 Women s Homes have been estabished in sending areas, i.e. four rura counties in Yunnan Province providing information services to young potentia migrants heping them to find secure empoyment prior to migration. More than 11,000 peope have participated in training on traffickingprevention awareness through the homes. Lega and socia support services, dramas, sketches, comic diaogues, dances and singing shows have been deveoped to spread trafficking prevention messages and assist women in need. The Kunming City Women s Federation announced in eary 2008 that they have opened another 50 Young Women Migrants City Homes in Kunming City, repicating the origina concept supported by the ILO-TICW project. Members have become aware of trafficking pitfas and how to avoid them, improved their working and iving skis and deveoped a sense of citizenship. Members have been encouraged to inform others, either in their home viages or in Kunming City about what they have earned on trafficking and ega rights. The centres provide training for young women in a variety of ega and heath issues, incuding courses on abour aw and AIDS awareness. Books can be borrowed from the ibrary and reguar artistic and sporting activities are organized providing a home away from home. The centres have begun to train women to run the services themseves. Many activities in the homes were approved and supported by empoyers; thus improving the reationship between the femae empoyees and their bosses, which has resuted in better protection of benefits. When the home offers a symposium, empoyers have been known to send their young femae empoyees to participate and a few of the empoyers even attend, sometimes giving a speech.

6 Meeting the Cha The drop-in centres have become more than just paces where peope can get CHINA information, discuss anti-trafficking issues and receive training they are foca points where oca peope congregate, thus making an important contribution to the socia cohesiveness of the communities. It is a comfortabe space where women and girs can get information and have discussions on trafficking and reated socia issues. The activities have brought viagers together to care about the socia and economic deveopment in their community, to exchange information and acquire knowedge and skis about project activities. Township and viage cadres meet with women there to discuss factors eading to trafficking and soutions to prevent it; viagers exchange agricuture product price information and the education of their chidren. We a benefit from the Home, noted Li Xueyan, a young Bai ethnic woman. The community takes care of us, so we are wiing to participate in the trainings and various activities organized in the community. When eight young women reported withhoding of wages by their restaurant empoyer, ega experts working with the Young Women Migrants City Homes investigated the charge and, after discussing the reevant aws with the boss, were abe to get the back wages. A young femae restaurant worker added, Through the study in the migrant s home, I earned many things. My awareness of sef-protection has improved. Now, when someone tries to introduce a new job to me, I wi think it over and over and not just consider the saary, as I woud have done before. It is a great difference with the past. LESSONS LEARNED: The 12 centres for migrant women that have been estabished in Kunming City are the resut of carefu anaysis into the target group. The Young Women Migrants City Homes have invoved oca government and the oca communities in their estabishment ensuring that the centres become an accepted part of their ocaities. Participants of the Women s Homes are mosty midde age and young women but some men are aso avaiing the services provided by the centres peope argey newy out of schoo and singe, open-minded and active. Thus trainings, entertainment and interaction activities shoud be designed appropriatey. In the Young Women Migrants City Homes, training pans, activities and equipment shoud be in response to young femae migrants interests and requests.

7 e Chaenge Popuarity of the Women s Homes became so great that eectricity costs doubed or triped. Budgets shoud be prepared for this. Traveing shows invoving some type of communication media shoud be in oca anguages; creating the subteams to perform tends to reinforce anti-trafficking efforts among them and improve their sef-protection abiities. Women s Homes tend to address many more factors that contribute to trafficking, such as boredom among young peope. These centres have become spaces to address many more of the factors that contribute to trafficking than was originay panned. Future community-based information centres shoud take into account the key roe they can pay in nurturing community activism, creative activities (such as pays about trafficking prevention) and in providing opportunities for socia interaction. A good socia organizer can maximize the benefits of the Women s Home for preventing trafficking. Activities and management of the centre shoud be reviewed periodicay and updated if necessary. Because the Women s Home is ocated in a centra spot in each viage, efforts are needed to reach out to remote viages where women and chidren are aso at risk of trafficking. Cose coaboration between reevant bureaus is necessary to suppy each Women s Home with materias on trafficking, gender issues, incomegeneration aternatives and on reevant aws and other ega knowedge. Invove the young migrant members in the organizing and managing of the community centre to guarantee its worthiness, their continuing interest and the overa sustainabiity. Dream Corps ge Meeting the Chae

8 nge Mee e Chaenge CHINA If funding is avaiabe, provided training in computer use, Engish, cuture, management, skis or any other requested topic that wi enhance the members we-being or vocationa potentia. Provision of such opportunities wi give the centre more vaue and vitaity. Reevant staff in communities and government departments most ikey wi need some degree of capacity buiding to oversee management of the Young Women Migrants City Homes and for committing needed resources.