Rising Repression

Against Migrants around the World

A side event to the 7^th UN Human Rights Council Session

18 March 2008 (Tuesday)

United Nations Building (Palais des Nations)

Geneva, Switzerland

Speakers:

• Alex Ong, Migrant Care (Malaysia)
• Catherine Tactaquin, National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights – NNIRR (USA)
• Mamadou Goïta, Institut de Recherche et de Promotion de Alternatives en Développement – IRPAD (Mali)
• Sophie de Rivaz, Collectif de soutien aux sans-papiers de Genève (Switzerland)
• Wol-san Liem, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions – KCTU (South Korea)
• Yenny Hurtado, Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores Domesticas (Colombia)

Special Guest Commentator:

• Hon. Luis Alfonso de Alba, Former President of the Human Rights Council

Moderators:

• Naomi Onaga, International Coordinator, Migrants Rights International (MRI)
• William Gois, Steering Committee Chair, Migrants Rights International (MRI) and Coordinator, Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA)

NOTES PREPARED BY HILARY KABAK, MRI

1. ALEX ONG, MIGRANT CARE (INDONESIA/MALAYSIA)

• The number of migrants in Malaysia is increasing (from 1 million in 2002 to 2.2 million in 2007). People come mainly from Indonesia, India and China The concern of the government is to round up undocumented workers.
• More than 25% of the workforce is made up of migrants workers.
• Malaysia and Indonesia have a “Memorandum of Understanding” concerning migrants.
• Migrants have to run away if they don’t do good work (fear of punishment). This is particularly a problem in the domestic sector (85+ run away each day; 30,000 a year). Also in construction, manufacturing and service industries.
• RELA (Malaysia People Volunteer Corp) was created in 1972. Role of RELA – conduct operation to arrest “illegal” immigrants. Target Indonesian workers in Malayasia. In 2005, government gave power to RELA to carry firearms and conduct raids and arrest “illegal” immigrants without oversight of law enforcement officers. RELA members are mostly retired military and mafia. They can enter civilian households and arrest people. They also are armed with firearms.
• Discrimination/racism is rampant. Authorities may tear up passports and identity documents. They may break into homes.
• They hold closed door hearings within detention camps.
• In January, RELA was given the authority to manage the camps, which increases cover-ups of mistreatment
• In May of 2006, the ruling party members of Parliament were made colonels of the military
• Media coverage of RELA activities of things relating RELA Operation is prohibited. Media members are abused if they break this decree
• RELA says they need money and power to keep the country stable, so their actions are legitimate
• If a detained or arrested migrant wants to be freed, undocumented must pay RM200; documented must pay RM100
• RELA kidnaps and rapes people it detains. Relevant embassies are not made aware of this
• Detention camps are very overcrowded
• Indians who protested their treatment at their own embassy were beaten by RELA
• The government feels no obligation to protect refugees
• Burmese refugees who live in the jungle even have their homes destroyed
• The government wants RELA not to be overzealous but does little to stop it
• All of this affects Indonesia/Malaysia relations
• The international community is needed to pressure the Malaysian government
• There are travel warnings for people going to Malaysia because of the risk of being targeted as a foreigner
• There is the possibility that RELA type organizations spread throughout Asia/Pacific

For more details of presentation, click here

2. WOL-SAN LIEM, MIGRANTS TRADE UNION, AFFILIATE OF THE KOREAN CONFEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS (KOREA)

• 3 leaders of the migrants’ trade union were arrested
• Migrant workers unions’ are organizing
• There are 900 thousand foreign-born in South Korea, half of whom are migrants. Half of these are undocumented
• The workplace exploitation is made worse with intensification of crackdowns
• In South Korea law, the right of all work ers to free association is protected, but the government does not recognize the migrants’ trade union because it was formed by undocumented migrant workers.
• The Seoul high court ruled that undocumented migrants do have the right to freedom of association, but Ministry of Labor has appealed this decision to the Supreme Court where it is pending.
• The migrants’ trade union is the first union established by undocumented workers and sets a precedent
• The first president was arrested and detained, but released because of health problems
• Members and officers have been arrested together in Seoul, which the authorities said was a coincidence, although it was obviously planned and strategic. President, vice president and general secretary were all arrested at same time in preplanned manner.
• Those arrested were sent far from Seoul and deported in the middle of the night through a whole cut in the back fence of the detention center
• The new leadership is fighting to keep the Trade Union going and wants it to be significant for migrants in other countries
• How can government be pressured to grant appropriate rights to migrant workers? How can MTU case be made useful for- the property of- whole migrant workers movement?

For more details of presentation, click here

3. YENNY HURTADO, SINDICATO DE TRABAJADORES DOMESTICAS DE COLOMBIA (COLOMBIA)

• Leading/organizing anything in Colombia is very difficult
• It has fallen on me to be president of the National Domestic Workers Union in Colombia for 20 years because nobody wants to do it
• Domestics work for powerful people, so they have a particularly hard time organizing and protesting
• They need the support of the international communityto support them and provide some protection
• At the regional level, domestic work is not considered work because it is not “productive.” It is given no value
• The old government did have some legislation to protect domestic workers, but change in regimes means we have to start from scratch
• Chile, Argentina, Paraguay have some legislation to protect domestic workers
• There are 2 classes of migrant workers in Latin America:
• those that stay in the Region
• those who leave to Europe
• Those who stay in LA are the poorest. They circulate through Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Brazil
• Mobility is a problem
• There is also the problem that in the North of South America, there is a larger black population, who are mistreated, especially if they go south
• Authorities and bosses may take workers’ documents to keep them from leaving and to manipulate them
• Another problem is that everyone in Central American wants to be in Costa Rica
• In Europe, the migrants from Latin America say to their families that they have professional jobs. Therefore, it is hard to organize them because they don’t recognize the work that they do.
• The situation of Latin American domestic workers in the Caribbean is also a problem that is rarely discussed
• It is important to think also of domestics that work for governors and ambassadors

4. SOPHIE DE RIVAZ, COLLECTIF DE SOUTIEN AUS SANS-PAPIERS DE GENÈVE (SWITZERLAND)

• When people think of immigration in Europe, they think of fences, of Ceuta and Melilla, of people getting into rickety boats and shipwrecks and dying in the Sea in transit to Italy and Spain
• Less publicity is given to detention camps
• Europe has essentially dismantled its internal borders while erecting walls around the external borders
• Switzerland is the example taken
• Schengen essentially shut down migration into Europe
• Switzerland has had Schengen-like and joins Schengen in November 2008
• As a result, if a migrant is not highly qualified and not from a Schengen (or Lichtenstein, Norway and Iceland), he is not able to work legally in Switzerland and no possibility of being regularized
• The law formalizes what was already the practice with regard to migrants from Asia, Latin America and Africa. But it will be very difficult to change the law.
• The law in theory is advertised as promoting integration and family rejoining, but out of 52 pages, 2 are for integration, and 5 are for regrouping
• The law makes it difficult to bring children over 12 because lawmakers thought they are too hard to integrate
• A new law is being planned in order to prevent marriage of an undocumented migrant or someone without a visa and residence
• If a migrant to be expelled won’t leave, he is detained up to 2 years, which is the longest in Europe
• After a large movement of Geneva migrant domestic workers, the government has recognized that they are important to the economy and need to be protected.
• It has thus asked for 5000 permits to the federal government in Bern for these people to work and live in Geneva but has not yet received an answer.
• Fortunately, many Swiss organizations combat exclusion. We have to keep in mind that Europe is a product of cultural migration

For full text of presentation, click here

5. CATHERINE TACTAQUIN, NATIONAL NETWORK FOR IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE RIGHTS (USA)

• The UN Special Rapporteur on Migrants Rights’s report on how the US treats immigrants was just released and finds many problems
• The government disagrees
• Abuse of migrants in the US is increasing
• HURRICANE is a network organized by the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, to help migrants whose rights have been violated
• Documented government raids with abuse number over 200
• There is a need to humanize the impact of laws and regulations
• There are patterns of rights violations
• DHS brings together all authorities to carry out raids of homes and places of work
• it pushes against organizing, labor rights and good legislation
• Certain communities are targeted and parents may be arrested and deported, leaving the children behind
• In 2003 a 10-yr plan was started to track down migrants and the government has increased capacity to track down migrants, conduct raids and deport people
• all is couched in war on terror and feeds into anti-immigrant sentiment
• immigrants are the fastest growing incarceration group, which is coupled with a crackdown on guest workers and other non-permanent residents
• local and state police have increased collaboration with state government and capacity to track migrants
• the humanitarian crisis at the US/Mexico border is deepening, with more deaths, and more high-tech monitoring of migrants
• the 2008 election is unlikely to change anything.

6. MAMADOU GOÏTA, INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE ET DE PROMOTION DE ALTERNATIVES EN DÉVELOPPEMENT – IRPAD (MALI)

• Mali has always been a focus of immigration (within Africa but also in Europe). Malians are known as moving population for trade. Like many others Africans, they have been recruited after the independence period to join Europe mainly France for some specific jobs. In the 60s, most Malians actually suffering from migration in France were working in factories but also in household. There was no cultural problem in terms of integration. Migrants were allowed to come back home and see their families during holidays. They didn't need them to move with these families.
• The first problems started in late 70's after the first big drought in Sahel countries in 1972-1973. Many young people joined their parents and the problems started for most of them. They were no longer allowed in many cases to come back home if they don't have citizenship. Work permits were no longer enough for moving between countries even for paying visits to parents.
• The early 80's brought again to Africa SAPs (Structural Adjustment Programmes) of the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).Many civil servants were pushed to leave their jobs. Finally, most of them tried to join Europe mainly France. The big problems started then for them.
• In Europe, most of the immigration laws are made to increase the difficulties for people of dark skin.
• There is a lot of prejudice on the African continent
• France is a country that essentially chooses its migrants. This is the new policy of President Sarkosy's government in France. They want only qualified Africans to be allowed to migrate in France. Those in whom poor African countries have invested a lot of money for their training. What a scandalous way of co-operating with our continent.
• There are 2 kinds of African migrants to Europe facing problems: (a) those already settled in Europe; (b) those on their way to join the cost of Europe "wandering" from countries to countries (in Africa but also in Europe)
• The root cause of migration in Africa is poverty that resulted from imposed new liberal economies and the fact that the continent's wealth (mines, oil...) have been looted by colonial countries and corporations coming from out of the continent.
• Europe and some Africa countries have been cooperating to impose restricted migration policies on young Africans leaving their countries with the hope of a better life an European country. Countries like Morocco, Senegal, Libya, Mauritania etc have specific agreements with France, Spain, Italy... to expel back Africans on their way to Europe.
• Aggression against migrants starts before they leave their homes and lasts through their stay in Europe. It is against economic rights and definitely against human rights. The physical oppression is a way of stopping migrants.
• Today, Europe is providing technical assistance to some African coastal countries to stop emigration. Some countries particularly France and Spain are providing firearms, cars, trucks, ships to stop migrants at all costs. All of this leads to people being killed in the Sahara, on the sea, at the beaches, in the forest, in small transit towns and villages when trying to migrate, especially from West African via countries like Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Libya...Most of the migrants from central Africa and some West African countries cross Mali to join Algeria and after Morocco to reach Spain, Portugal or Italy.
• Frequently many people die trying to climb fences. Sometimes they are shot with guns
• Those caught trying to leave can be thrown in the Sahara and left to starve in the desert
• Many testimonies in Mali gave information on soldiers from some of the countries raping female migrants on their way to Spain. Abuse is rampant, and many of these migrants coming mainly from Cameroon and other central and West Africa countries are then expelled to Mali.
• A new practice for the French government is looking for children of migrants at school and the expel them or their parents. Many cases have been reported on TVs and radios these last years.
• In France the new quotas mean that 25,000 migrants must be expelled yearly from the country. This has led to a new form of racism in an effort to find them, since Africans are quite visible by their skin
• DNA tests to determine family relationships are the highest form of humiliation for Africans and this is a new proposal from the French government.
• Because of all the oppression against African communities, nobody wants to live where many of live because they fear being targeted and persecuted
• In the international sphere, Africans are the most marginalized group because of the economic situation of the continent.
• This continent needs the solidarity of the international community because if Africa is left to decline, this will create new problems for everyone all over the world.

7. COMMENTATOR: AMB. LUIS ALFONSO DE ALBA

• Mexico works for the rights of migrants
• Mexico recognizes its failures in supporting migrants from other countries within its borders, which is not to say it is solved, but that it is making progress
• There is hypocrisy at all levels of government
• People in human rights don’t want to talk about migrants rights
• Migration is a human right
• State sovereignty does not mean the right to block people out, but migrants are immediately always excluded
• The UN called for a migrant forum a few years ago, but nobody wanted it
• Progress can’t be made if people deny the links of migration to other issues
• Quotas are bad
• Governments shouldn’t deny rights to migrants already within their borders
• The question of migration needs to return to the international forum
• There is no coordination among organizations that deal with migration (HR commission, ILO, etc)
• If they want an international agenda, we should
• use existing international instruments
• use legally binding instruments
• Migrants shouldn’t be excepted from the rules
• “Good” migrants are those the government wants; “bad” are the ones it doesn’t
• Agendas should be balanced in favor of cooperation
• Mexico is a country of immigration, emigration and transit
• Mexico wants agreements with its neighbors
• No one supports a human rights event on migration

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

• Language of GFMD: migrants should be protected because a protected worker is a productive worker.
• What kinds of alliances are we building?
• Globalized labor and international competition
• Governments need to be pressured
• The stalemate of international migration needs to be challenged
• The walls of Europe have been put up outside of Europe
• Modern migration in labor migration
• We need a new culture of migration, including co-responsibility
• A dialogue between development and migration must include human rights
• People should pay more attention to kids whose parents have been deported
• The US has 8 million undocumented migrants
• UN Special Rapporteur’s report was incomplete – did not have information, for instance, about labor rights violations against migrants in US – ex. Hoffman Plastics found undocumented migrants can’t claim unpaid wages