Labour migration: global and regional studies
Individual Documents
Sub-title:
Workers in Myanmar say management targeted union supporters under pretense layoffs were related to coronavirus
Description:
"Hundreds of workers at two factories in Myanmar that produce clothing for Zara and Primark were fired days after forming a union in a move workers say targeted union supporters under the pretense that layoffs were related to the coronavirus. Zara is the main brand of Inditex, the largest clothing retailer in the world. At the Huabo Times factory, days after filing a registration for their union, workers noted management terminated over 100 workers, primarily union members and supporters, and transferred 200 non-union workers from a different factory to replace them four days after the dismissals.
At the Rui-Ning factory, 298 union members were fired from the factory in early May 2020. The union registered at Rui-Ning in February 2020.
“I see the firing as clearly union-busting under the pretext of the pandemic. The factory fired most of the union members, including myself,” said Kyaw Thu Zaw, a worker at the Rui-Ning factory for about 10 months and president of the union. “They gave the excuse of difficulty in transporting products to Europe, but in reality there was no difficulty as the factory transported a bulk of products to destination countries on 12 May.” He noted regular shifts consisted of 10-hour work days, six days a week, with workers expected to regularly work overtime in order to make enough money to survive. Workers at the factory make around $3 per day..."
Source/publisher:
"The Guardian" (UK)
Date of publication:
2020-06-24
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The pandemic has laid bare a broken system
Description:
"This edited article by Thammachart Kri-aksorn is from Prachatai, an independent news site in Thailand, and is republished by Global Voices as part of a content-sharing agreement.
The Thai Ministry of Labour has invoked an Emergency Decree to prohibit labor strikes and lockouts during the COVID-19 outbreak. Any labour disputes will be now be transferred to the Labour Relations Committee appointed by Chatumongol Sonakul, the Minister of Labour.
The order entered force on May 6.
Under normal circumstances, Thai law allows strikes and lockouts for irreconcilable disputes, except in essential infrastructure industries. The government can intervene only when the country is under martial law or an emergency decree, or when the Minister of Labour rules that labor disputes may affect the economy or public order, such as is the case at the moment.
The order was issued in an attempt to mitigate surging unemployment resulting from government measures taken to control COVID-19. On May 13 the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare called for business owners to consider labour relations principles before laying off employees, including alternative cost-cutting and improved human resources management..."
Source/publisher:
"Global Voices"
Date of publication:
2020-05-22
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Labour migration: global and regional studies, All Labour Rights (violations)
Language:
more
Description:
"THE SPECTRE OF HOPE brings together art critic John Berger, author of WAYS OF SEEING, and world-renowned photographer Sebastião. Critic and writer John Berger talks with brazilean photographer Sebastião Salgado on his photographs book Migrations..."
Source/publisher:
Sebastião Salgado and John Berger via YouTube
Date of publication:
2018-01-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-02-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Labour migration: global and regional studies, Not two, The global environment - resources, Economy and social justice (global)
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar dispatched over 234,000 MoU workers to Thailand last year, according to the Labour Department.
The number of MoU workers has increased though the factories faced the shutdowns due to the market restrictions caused by the violations of human rights in the marine product factories in Thailand. Due to the shutdown of factories, some Myanmar migrant workers become jobless and go home.
The number of MoU workers who left for Thailand reached 31,828 in 2014, 52,765 in 2015, 97,998 in 2016, 145,161 in 2017 and over 150,000 in 2018.
U Moe Kyaw, head of YaungchiOo Labour Affairs Office said: “There are more than 400 factories and plants in Mae Sot. In addition to the factories, more than 250,000 Myanmar migrant workers are working in construction sites, farming, housemaid services and shops. Thai government has fixed 310 baht for a eight-hour working day in Mae Sot. Myanmar migrant workers from around five factories earn their salaries fully. But Myanmar migrant workers from other factories and work sites get 150-200 baht only. They also face the violations in health and social affairs.”..."
Source/publisher:
Eleven Media Group (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-01-12
Date of entry/update:
2020-01-12
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Burmese migrant workers, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Migrant workers' registration in Thailand - articles, statements, texts and guidelines, Thailand-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar authorities sent 30,841 migrant workers to work in foreign countries in November, according to a release from the Information Ministry on Friday.
In November alone, 21,405 workers were sent to Thailand while 8,440 workers to Malaysia and 591 to Japan.
Also, 230 workers were sent to South Korea, 83 to Jordan, 61 to Singapore, 24 to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and seven to Qatar, respectively.
During the period, a total of 24,268 local employments were also offered by the Ministry of Labor, Immigration and Population and of them, 23,943 workers engaged in private sector.
The ministry has been offering local and foreign employment opportunities to local people through online labor exchange management system, with an aim to promote development of the country and help local people increase their incomes..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2019-12-13
Date of entry/update:
2019-12-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Labour migration: global and regional studies, Migrant workers from Burma : general and mixed articles and reports, Burma/Myanmar's relationship with the Global Economy
Language:
more
Description:
"The ASEAN Safe Migration Campaign was launched in December 2018 at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta. Building on the 2017 ASEAN Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers signed in Manila, the campaign seeks to ‘raise public awareness on safe labour migration that benefits all’. While well-intentioned, the campaign is hindered by a simplistic concept of safe migration that falls short of addressing the challenges faced by migrant workers in the region. Significant ambiguity surrounds the concept of ‘safe’ migration. Without a clear understanding of the term, scholars and practitioners are using the term loosely. Safe migration is open to subjective interpretation and its meaning differs across actors. If we neglect to examine what safe migration means in a given context, contradictions will compromise efforts to protect and promote the rights of migrant workers.
So, what is safe migration? The most accurate answer is that it depends. The more helpful answer is that the meaning of safe migration is derived from how individual communities present and use the term. While basic aspects of safety such as the preservation of life are clear and undisputed, other associations often depend on how local actors define the concept. In the context of Southeast Asia, the ASEAN Safe Migration Campaign offers a window into understanding how safe migration relates to the region’s seven million migrant workers..."
Source/publisher:
"East Asia Forum" (Australia)
Date of publication:
2019-08-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-11-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
46.54 KB (4 pages)
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Description:
76 photographs of Brazilian photographer, Sebastiao Salgado.
Source/publisher:
"Sebastiao Salgado"
Date of publication:
2006-12-26
Date of entry/update:
2019-10-08
Grouping:
Individual Documents
more
Description:
"Migration has increasingly become a widespread livelihood strategy for people in
Myanmar. Today, 25% of Myanmar’s population is a migrant whether they migrate internally and internationally. The underlying drivers for movement are
complex and interrelated – including unstable and physically demanding rural
livelihoods, lack of stable and viable employment opportunities, chronic poverty
and indebtedness, emergence of industrial zones and new industries, unpredictable weather patterns, conflicts in some parts of
the country and a desire to support the education of siblings or to pursue personal ambitions.
While the social, economic and environmental drivers of migration in Myanmar vary widely, Myanmar migrants share at least one
goal: to improve their lives. In search for better lives for themselves and their families, labour migration is the most commonly
used form of mobility. IOM Myanmar’s Labour Mobility and Human Development programme’s overall objective is to help labour
migrants and their families experience the economic and social benefits of migration and address the unintended or negative consequences of migration. Reflecting the reality that migration for many people is a necessity rather than a choice, we also support
diversifying livelihood choices in communities of origin, to make migration beneficial for those who leave and those who stay behind.
The Labour Mobility and Human Development Programme works
closely with government and non-government partners at local,
national and international levels to foster synergies between labour migration and development, and to support safe, informed
and gainful labour migration for migrants, their families, communities, and for Myanmar as a whole..."
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2018-07-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
606.31 KB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Migration has increasingly become a widespread livelihood strategy for people in
Myanmar. Today, 25% of Myanmar’s population is a migrant whether they migrate internally and internationally. The underlying drivers for movement are
complex and interrelated – including unstable and physically demanding rural
livelihoods, lack of stable and viable employment opportunities, chronic poverty
and indebtedness, emergence of industrial zones and new industries, unpredictable weather patterns, conflicts in some parts of
the country and a desire to support the education of siblings or to pursue personal ambitions.
While the social, economic and environmental drivers of migration in Myanmar vary widely, Myanmar migrants share at least one
goal: to improve their lives. In search for better lives for themselves and their families, labour migration is the most commonly
used form of mobility. IOM Myanmar’s Labour Mobility and Human Development programme’s overall objective is to help labour
migrants and their families experience the economic and social benefits of migration and address the unintended or negative consequences of migration. Reflecting the reality that migration for many people is a necessity rather than a choice, we also support
diversifying livelihood choices in communities of origin, to make migration beneficial for those who leave and those who stay behind.
The Labour Mobility and Human Development Programme works
closely with government and non-government partners at local,
national and international levels to foster synergies between labour migration and development, and to support safe, informed
and gainful labour migration for migrants, their families, communities, and for Myanmar as a whole..."
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2018-07-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
606.31 KB
Local URL:
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Ma Khin Thuzar, Thida Win, Aung Thu
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-17
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Children, Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
Ma Lwin Lwin Joe, Wai Wai Tun
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-13
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Policies towards Burmese migrant workers
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
Description:
Mr. Akio Nakayama, Chief of Mission, IOM Myanmar, at Nay Pyi Taw CHIME Workshop, March 6, 2019
Mr. Akio Nakayama
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-03
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
more
Description:
Mr. Benjamin Harkins, Programme Officer, Livelihoods and Food Security Fund (LIFT), at Nay Pyi Taw CHIME Workshop, March 6, 2019
Mr. Benjamin Harkins
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-03
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Food Security - global and regional literature, Food Security and nutrition in Burma/Myanmar
Language:
English
more
Tin Thoung, Nyein Thet Nwe, U Zaw Moe Aung, Zin Nyo Nyo Win
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-17
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Agriculture in Burma/Myanmar: general and research, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Climate Change - Migration Burma/Myanmar, Trafficking: Burma-specific material
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
Description:
Mr. Nay Lwin, Chief of Staff, Myanmar Microfinance Association (MMFA), at Nay Pyi Taw CHIME Workshop, March 6, 2019
Mr. Nay Lwin
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-03
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Economy: general, analytical, statistical (Government of Myanmar perspectives), Labour migration: global and regional studies
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
U Htay Mg
Source/publisher:
IOM Myanmar
Date of publication:
2019-06-13
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-22
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Economics of migration from Burma/Myanmar -
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
Description:
"Over the past decade, Myanmar has experienced a marked increase in migration, coinciding with a
period of rapid economic growth.1
Internal and international migrants already represent 25 per cent of
Myanmar’s total population. These migrants are primarily low-skilled and from poor rural households
seeking to improve the long-term prospects for themselves and their families. Their migration is driven
by interconnected structural and social factors, including rural poverty, lack of viable employment
opportunities, earning differences between origin and destination, aspirations for modern work and/
or a modern lifestyle, the desire to break away from chronic indebtedness, and environmental changes
and conflict.
While migration is a crucial part of development, its ability to reduce poverty at the household level
is contingent upon the effective management of the multiple risks and hardships faced by migrant
households. Over the long term, the benefits of migration can offset hardships and downward slides
into poverty by increasing the earnings of migrants and opening up new opportunities to them and
their families. However, there is a need for policymaking to better align with and support the longterm aspirations of migrants and their families.
The “Capitalising Human Mobility for Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development for Myanmar”
(CHIME) study aims to address the knowledge gap on labour migration and its relationship with poverty
and development in four areas in Myanmar: Ayeyarwardy Region, Mandalay Region, Rakhine State
and Shan State. CHIME employed a mixed-methods design, including a quantitative household survey
and qualitative in-depth interviews, collected in two rounds in 2017. The quantitative samples were
intended to be representative of rural households in each of the four identified, and the findings are
regionally representative for Ayeyarwady and Mandalay regions. The study cannot and does claim to be
representative of Rakhine and Shan States due to various limitations to accessing some of the villages.2
The CHIME project was implemented by a consortium composed of the Ministry of Labour,
Immigration and Population, the University of Sussex, Metta Development Foundation, and the
International Organization for Migration (IOM). Financial support was provided by the Livelihoods
and Food Security Fund (LIFT). The findings of the study are summarized in the sections that follow..."
Priya Deshingkar, Julie Litchfield, Wen-Ching Ting
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2019-01-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
4.39 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Over the past decade, Myanmar has experienced a
marked increase in migration, coinciding with a period
of rapid economic growth.1 Internal and international
migrants already represent 26 per cent of Myanmar’s
total population.2
These migrants primarily work in
low-skilled occupations and come from poor rural
households. By migrating, they seek to improve
long-term prospects for themselves and their families.
Their migration is driven by interconnected structural
and social factors, including rural poverty, lack of viable
employment opportunities, earning differences
between origin and destination, aspirations for modern
work and/or a modern lifestyle, the desire to break away
from chronic indebtedness, and environmental changes
and conflict.
While migration is a crucial part of development, its
ability to reduce poverty at the household level is
contingent upon the effective management of the
multiple risks and hardships faced by migrant
households. Over the long term, the benefits of
migration can offset hardships and downward slides into
poverty by increasing the earnings of migrants and
opening up new opportunities to them and their
families. However, there is a need for policymaking to
1
better align with and support the long-term aspirations of migrants and their families and acknowledge
the contribution they make to Myanmar’s development.
The “Capitalising Human Mobility for Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development for Myanmar”
(CHIME) study aims to address the knowledge gap
on labour migration and its relationship with poverty
and development in four areas in Myanmar: Ayeyarwardy Region, Mandalay Region, Rakhine State and
Shan State. CHIME employed a mixed-methods
design, including a quantitative household survey
covering a total of randomly sampled 3,116 households
from 172 enumerated areas (EAs)3
and qualitative
in-depth interviews of 192 individuals who were
purposely sampled from lower-economic strata
households, collected in two rounds in 2017. The quantitative samples were intended to be representative of
rural households in each of the four identified
states/regions, and the findings are regionally representative for Ayeyarwady and Mandalay regions. The
study cannot claim to be representative of Rakhine
and Shan States due to various limitations to accessing
sampled villages..."
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2018-05-28
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
903.46 KB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Today, women account for almost half the
world’s international migrants.1
Global labour
migration trends show that more women are
migrating independently for economic reasons
and not only as the dependants of men.
Migration decisions and strategies are different
among men and women and migration affects
men and women in different ways – whether
they are migrants or not. Women migrants tend
to work in different sectors of the labour market
from men, often with different levels of job
security and wages, and different remittance
patterns.2
Given these differences, it is important
to consider how gender shapes who migrates,
where, when and how, as well as the different
impacts of men and women’s migration.
This briefing paper presents findings from the
CHIME study relating to gender and migration
in four regions of Myanmar. It outlines
differences and similarities between men and
women’s patterns of migration. This is followed
by sections on drivers and strategies of
migration, remittance amounts and incidence,
and the impact of migration on gender roles.
Finally, it outlines considerations for future
action..."
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2017-01-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Articles, reports and sites relating to women of Burma, Labour migration: global and regional studies
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.11 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Agriculture accounts for 26 per cent of Myanmar’s GDP and employs almost half of the
country’s workforce.1 It is the primary source of
livelihood for most people living in rural areas.2
Migration for work is also common in Myanmar and growing even more so: the country’s
rapid growth in recent years has coincided
with a marked increase in both internal and
international migration. Migration is tightly
linked to agricultural work: many migrants
move from rural to urban areas and from agriculture to other employment sectors. This
trend is coinciding with a general transition in
Myanmar’s economy away from agriculture
and towards industry and services.
This briefing paper draws on findings from
the CHIME research project to look at how
agricultural work drives migration, and how
migration affects the agricultural sector. It
identifies opportunities for policymakers to
help make agriculture and migration
promote sustainable, equitable development..."
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2017-01-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
IOM Burma/Myanmar, Labour migration: global and regional studies, Agriculture in Burma/Myanmar: general and research, Smallholder farming and farmers in Burma/Myanmar, Agricultural Land, Burmese migrant workers
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
2.16 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
"With almost half of the labour force working
in agriculture,1
Myanmar remains a
predominately rural country. However, the
proportion of the population living in urban
areas is increasing each year and is expected
to do so at ever-faster rates of change.2
In
2014, at the time of the last census, 70 per
cent of Myanmar’s enumerated population
were residing in rural areas and 30 per cent in
urban areas.3
Yangon is Myanmar’s most urbanised region
and accounts for about 35 per cent of the
country’s urban population.4 In 2014, there
were 5.2 million people living in the former
capital but it is projected that Yangon will
become a 10 million person megacity by
2040.5
Although in part a question of natural
increase, migration is an important
contributor to urbanisation in Myanmar as
rural populations seek new lives and
livelihoods in cities. This mirrors global trends
toward the redistribution of population from
rural to urban areas..."
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2018-01-01
Date of entry/update:
2019-06-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
1.36 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Prepared by Patrick Taran, President, website: www.globalmigrationpolicy.org email: [email protected] This paper does not necessarily reflect collective views of GMPA or of its member Associates."..."This address reviews the bigger picture, outlining what?s going down and why. The world of
migration is being transformed; migration is transforming the world. Those who defend a rights and
social protection centred approach need to fully assess reality to know what to do, and do it right....
In broad terms, migration is key to sustaining the world of work in the Twenty-First Century.
Migration today is fundamentally about internationalized labour and skills mobility in a globalized
world. As Ban Ki Moon (Secretary General of the United Nations) said, we?re in the age of mobility.
90% of all migration ?of all migrants-- is bound up in employment outcomes, in economic activity,
meaning people who are either working or dependent on those who are.
Migration is about people, and in a world dominated by a capitalist mode of economic relations,
governing migration is inevitably about protection of people, about decent work for all, about social
protection and ultimately about justice in our societies, for all people whether they are working or not.
Migration today is key to the viability of labour markets worldwide. It is key to obtaining return on
capital in a globalized capitalist economy. It is key to development yes, but especially, the viability,
indeed the very survival of the developed economies depends on migration..."
Patrick Taran
Source/publisher:
Global Migration Policy Associates
Date of publication:
2014-10-30
Date of entry/update:
2017-07-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
283.92 KB
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Description:
Executive Summary: "This report outlines patterns of migrant smuggling
in Asia and presents evidence-based knowledge
to guide policy and strengthen international
cooperation. Developed by the United Nations
Office on Drugs and Crime, it is part of a series
of knowledge products considering acute and
far-reaching issues confronting governments and
communities in South-East Asia, as part of an
ongoing analytical and capacity-strengthening
process.
Migrant smuggling occurs against the backdrop
of regional integration within Asia, which has
created a rapid increase in the cross-border
movement of people and goods. Countries often
have a multifaceted relationship to the migration
phenomenon, simultaneously serving as a source,
transit and destination for regular and irregular
migration. Although most migrant smuggling in the
region takes place within Asia, smuggled migrants
are also reaching destinations in Australia, New
Zealand, Europe and North America.
The majority of smuggled migrants are young
male adults but there are also a significant
number of young women and children. While a
range of factors motivate migration, such as family
reunification or escaping (political) persecution,
the majority of migrants are in pursuit of better
economic opportunities. Smugglers are used when
accessing legal channels for migration proves
unsuccessful or remains difficult. Regular labour
migration channels are typically inadequate, and
therefore informal, unlicensed, and also licensed
recruitment agencies exploit these shortcomings
and fill in the gaps.
In South-East Asia, labour opportunities are
the primary driver for irregular migration, with
male smuggled migrants taking on positions
in manufacturing, agriculture, fisheries and
construction. Female migration is also on the
rise and often leads to work in domestic service,
hospitality, entertainment or the sex industry.
Irregular migrants are typically young and willing
(and able) to face the risks associated with what
can be a difficult journey. They can adapt to what
sometimes are harsh work and living conditions
in the destination country. However, families
and unaccompanied minors are also migrating
irregularly, which risks even more dramatic
consequences.
Smuggling is often a complex process with
real dangers for the lives, health and safety of
migrants. In addition to being far away from their
home communities and in the destination country
illegally, smuggled migrants find it difficult to
assert their rights. They are more vulnerable
to abuse, exploitation and trafficking as well as
susceptible to involvement in criminal activities.
Despite the lack of comprehensive research or
documentation, an estimated 40,000 irregular
migrants have died worldwide since 2000.
Smugglers of migrants are driven by profit and
the complexity and level of organization of a
journey depends on the intended destination
and the amount a migrant is willing or able to
pay. Smuggling networks have been reported to
manage complex operations covering source,
transit and destination countries. The majority of
operations in Asia, however, take place on an ad
hoc and less sophisticated basis.
Active in a variety of roles, smugglers are involved
as recruiters, transporters, accommodation
providers, facilitators, enforcers, organizers and
financiers. They can adapt quickly to changing
circumstances and comprise a range of diverse
backgrounds, nationalities and age groups. In
many cases, the smugglers were once smuggled
migrants..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Date of publication:
2015-04-00
Date of entry/update:
2015-04-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
8.07 MB 1.48 MB
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Description:
"...The report covers migration dynamics in East and South-East Asia and is a collaborative effort
by all the organizations that participate in the Regional Thematic Working Group, which is
co-chaired by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the
International Organization for Migration (IOM), the aim of which is to explore the complex
inter-linkages between international migration and the process of economic, demographic and
social development within the region. As such, it aspires to be a tool both for migration policy
formulation in a comprehensive manner similar to, and consistent with the formulation of other
development objectives, and for fostering understanding of social and cultural interaction. It is
also hoped that the findings of this report will support public dialogue that will, in the long term,
lead to a process of developing coherent and coordinated migration policies. The report suggests
key areas in which there is scope for greater regional and subregional cooperation in improving
the management of migration as well as for the enhancement of its positive impacts on the
source and host countries and the migrants themselves..."
Source/publisher:
International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2008-00-00
Date of entry/update:
2014-07-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
3.73 MB
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Description:
Contents:
Foreword...
Executive summary ...
Introduction...
1 - Objective ....
2 - Methodology....
Part 1 - Myanmar?s cross-border trade....
1 - Impact of sanctions on cross-border trade....
2 - Local perceptions of cross-border trade....
3 - The context of informal/illegal cross-border trade ....
4 - Illegal versus illicit products....
5 - Costs and benefits of informal cross-border trade....
6 - Case studies related to cross-border trade and its effects......
Part 2 - Cross-border mobility
and human smuggling from Myanmar:
1 - Illegal border crossings...
2 - Causes and effects of cross-border mobility....
3 - Costs and benefits of mobility ....
Conclusion.....Executive summary:
"Myanmar, the second biggest country in terms of area in mainland
South East Asia, borders five neighboring countries: China, Thailand,
India, Bangladesh, and Lao PDR. Myanmar?s longest borders are with
China (approximately 1,357 miles) and Thailand (approximately
1,314 miles), and it shares coastal waters with Malaysia and Singapore.
Being a member of at least nine Asia and Pacific inter-governmental
organizations that include the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Greater
Mekong Subregion (GMS), the UN Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the Asian Development Bank (ADB),
Upper Mekong Commercial Navigation, the Asia Pacific Fishery
Commission, Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT), and the Association of
South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), Myanmar is actively involved in
various economic cooperation programs.
However, the pace of Myanmar?s economic development still lags
behind that of other members in these organizations. In addition,
informal activities and informal moment of goods and people have been
quite significant due to many factors. Although various policy measures
have been developed to mitigate these informal activities, there has not
been any study regarding the sources of these informal activities, their
costs and benefits, impacts and consequences of the existence and nonexistence of these activities, or how these activities could be mitigated
without having significant negative economic and social impacts on the
local people and the economy as the whole.
Without knowing causes and effects, costs and benefits, and factors
behind informal activities, it is not simple to come up with restrictive
policies to control them. In some cases, restrictive policies have caused
severe adverse social and economic impacts on the community. Hence, it
is very important that proper research is conducted in order to identify multidimensional issues that could effectively be addressed by multidimensional policies through close cooperation among the stakeholders.
This paper attempts to identify factors behind causes and effects of
informal flows in goods and persons across the borders between
Myanmar and its neighboring countries, especially China and Thailand,
and to address related issues and possible policy implications."
Winston Set Aung
Source/publisher:
Irasec (Carnet de l?Irasec / Occasional Paper S?rie Observatoire / Observatory Series No 04)
Date of publication:
2011-06-00
Date of entry/update:
2012-09-20
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Labour migration: global and regional studies, Border Trade with Thailand, Smuggling apart from drugs
Language:
English
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Description:
Abstract: "This paper focuses on the recent emergence of regional production networks and
border industrial zones, the labor migrations they are generating, and their consequences for
?surplus populations? in the Greater Mekong Subregion (mainland Southeast Asia). In this
region the textile and garment industry is employing increasing numbers of workers in border
areas on flexible and highly precarious work ?contracts?. To understand these emergent labor
formations we focus on three scales of analysis through a case study from the Thailand–Burma
border. We focus on initiatives led by the Asia Development Bank, accompanying subregional
political groupings which aim to facilitate capital flows and trade by reducing transaction time
and cost, and a case study of labor recruitment and employment practices in one border town.
In examining these three scales, we question the value of characterizing such trans-national,
state-led, authoritarian, and racialized labor formations as neoliberal."
Keywords: precarious labor,migration, Greater Mekong Subregion, Mae Sot, border industrial
zones, racialization, textile and garment industry
Dennis Arnold, John Pickles
Source/publisher:
Department of Geography, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA;
Date of publication:
2011-10-00
Date of entry/update:
2011-11-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Migrant workers from Burma : general and mixed articles and reports, Labour migration: global and regional studies
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
167.24 KB
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Description:
International Organization for Migration;
International Labour Organization,
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS,
United Nations Development Programme,
United Nations Development Fund for Women,
United Nations Population Fund,
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees,
World Health Organization, United Nations Children?s Fund,
World Bank,
United Nations Country Team in Thailand...Foreword:
Transborder migration is a well-known phenomenon in Thailand. Over the past 30 years, Thailand has
promoted and administered the export of its labour as well as hosted hundreds of thousands of nationals
from neighbouring countries, who have fled their homelands due to war, internal conflict or national
instability. Although the number of people seeking refuge has varied during different periods, Thailand has
accommodated these displaced people on a humanitarian basis. In addition, the Royal Thai Government
has regularly given refuge and assisted in times of crisis. The government has erected temporary shelter
along the border to house them and provided security personnel. Repatriation and resettlement has been
on-going. However, with conflict and instability persistent in certain areas, some of the displaced people
have been unable to return home and today as many as 130,000 remain in the country.
While many of its neighbours have had to deal with internal difficulties, over the past 20 years Thailand
has seen remarkable progress in human development. Thailand has demonstrated its success in meeting
most, if not all, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and has moved on to set more ambitious targets
of MDG ?Plus” that go well beyond the internationally agreed MDGs. Thailand reached the international
MDG poverty target of halving the proportion of people living in poverty between 1990 and 2015, and will
achieve these goals well in advance of 2015. This economic success and development enjoyed by Thailand
has attracted thousands of migrants from neighbouring countries looking for a better standard of living.
Furthermore, it has shaped migration flows in the region. While 500,000 Thais are reported to be working
overseas, it is estimated that there are more than two million migrant workers from neighbouring
Myanmar, Lao People?s Democratic Republic and Cambodia in Thailand, out of which 501,590 hold a valid
work permit.
In recent years, international migration is a topic of discussion high on the agenda of governments, the
United Nations, international organisations and non-governmental organisations, due to its links to a broad
range of economic, social and demographic issues. The United Nations Partnership Framework (UNPAF)
2007-2011 has embraced migration-related issues in its main areas of cooperation to promote the
reduction of disparity and sustainable human development.
The United Nations Thematic Working Group on International Migration, active since 2004, aims to
implement migration-related joint activities in Thailand. Raising the profile of and facilitate better
understanding on migration issues will improve the living and working conditions of migrants in Thailand in
line with the UNPAF 2007-2011. The member agencies have been cooperating to create a better
understanding and developing a common approach of the migration phenomena in Thailand by
strengthening coordination mechanisms and information sharing among concerned United Nations
agencies, in close cooperation with several Ministries of the Royal Thai Government.
The Report is the result of joint collaboration among the members. The
second edition (2009 report) has been prepared to review and analyze recent international migration
trends and issues in Thailand. This edition is an update of the country?s migration situation report published
in 2005. Many ministries and offices of the Royal Thai Government have also cooperated closely in the
preparation of this report.
It is our hope that this 2009 Report will provide valuable, up-to-date information that can be used in policy
recommendations on international migration. Furthermore, it is anticipated that this report will be of value
to the Royal Thai Government, the United Nations, international organisations and non-governmental
organisations in the formulation of policies and implementation of programmes that affect the lives of
displaced people, migrant workers and their children and that pave the way for effective migration
management.
Rosalia Sciortino, Sureeporn Punpuing
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM) et al
Date of publication:
2009-00-00
Date of entry/update:
2010-12-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
18.6 MB
Local URL:
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Description:
"...Responding to chronic labour shortages in the oil rich Arab states in the 1970s and 1980s, some Asian states have been among the first to develop an active overseas employment or labour migration policy that seeks to provide protection to its nationals working abroad, relieve domestic unemployment and augment foreign exchange earnings. This volume looks at recent trends in labour migration in Asia, the issues and challenges faced by migrants and countries of origin, and policy responses by the state.The report contains articles by labour migration specialists at the ILO, IOM and the APMRN (Asia Pacific Migration Research Network) and includes a compendium of labour migration polices and practices in nine major Asian labour sending states...
Table of Contents : Preface * Part I - International Labour Migration in Asia: Trends, Characteristics, Policy and Interstate Cooperation * Protection of Migrant Workers in Asia: Issues and Policies * Capacity building and Interstate Cooperation to Protect Migrant Workers and Facilitate Orderly Labour Migration * Part II - Compendium of Labour Migration Policies and Practices in Major Asian Labour Sending Countries..."
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2003-00-00
Date of entry/update:
2010-12-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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Description:
Summary: "Migration for work has become a way of life for thousands of poorly educated, largely unskilled
villagers in Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam. They leave home for a variety of reasons
most often related to family difficulties, lack of land for agriculture and a general lack of
employment opportunities in their region. Migrants of all ages often travel without legal travel
documents, sometimes dependent on paid brokers, to find work in Thailand that may involve
dirty, dangerous or poor living and working conditions without access to health care. Among
their numbers are children as young as 10 and adolescents, and single females, who are
vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. While some migrants return home with money to pay for
a new house or shop or consumer goods, others return only to find they are still faced with
economic hardships that lead them to migrate again. Reliable information is generally
unavailable to villagers in advance of their departure and they leave home without adequate
understanding of travel requirements, employment opportunities and the risks of traveling and
living abroad. Few migrants knew of any organization they could contact for information, advice
or advocacy abroad. While there have been some gains in passport use and awareness of the
risks, migration for work in the five countries surveyed remains a dangerous way of life."
Source/publisher:
Social Environment Research Consultants (SERC)
Date of publication:
2010-05-00
Date of entry/update:
2010-05-09
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
191.51 KB
Local URL:
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Description:
"Migration not infrequently gets a bad press. Negative stereotypes
portraying migrants as stealing our jobs? or scrounging off the
taxpayer? abound in sections of the media and public opinion, especially
in times of recession. For others, the word migrant? may
evoke images of people at their most vulnerable. This year?s Human
Development Report, Overcoming Barriers: Human Mobility and
Development, challenges such stereotypes. It seeks to broaden and
rebalance perceptions of migration to reflect a more complex and
highly variable reality.
This report breaks new ground in applying a
human development approach to the study of
migration. It discusses who migrants are, where
they come from and go to, and why they move. It
looks at the multiple impacts of migration for all
who are affected by it—not just those who move,
but also those who stay.
In so doing, the report?s findings cast new
light on some common misconceptions. For example,
migration from developing to developed
countries accounts for only a minor fraction of
human movement. Migration from one developing
economy to another is much more common.
Most migrants do not go abroad at all, but instead
move within their own country.
Next, the majority of migrants, far from
being victims, tend to be successful, both before
they leave their original home and on arrival
in their new one. Outcomes in all aspects of
human development, not only income but also
education and health, are for the most part positive—
some immensely so, with people from the
poorest places gaining the most.
Reviewing an extensive literature, the report
finds that fears about migrants taking the jobs
or lowering the wages of local people, placing an
unwelcome burden on local services, or costing
the taxpayer money, are generally exaggerated.
When migrants? skills complement those of local
people, both groups benefit. Societies as a whole
may also benefit in many ways—ranging from rising
levels of technical innovation to increasingly
diverse cuisine to which migrants contribute.
The report suggests that the policy response
to migration can be wanting. Many governments
institute increasingly repressive entry
regimes, turn a blind eye to health and safety
violations by employers, or fail to take a lead
in educating the public on the benefits of
immigration.
By examining policies with a view to expanding
people?s freedoms rather than controlling
or restricting human movement, this
report proposes a bold set of reforms. It argues
that, when tailored to country-specific contexts,
these changes can amplify human mobility?s
already substantial contributions to human
development.
The principal reforms proposed centre
around six areas, each of which has important
and complementary contributions to make to
human development: opening up existing entry
channels so that more workers can emigrate;
ensuring basic rights for migrants; lowering the
transaction costs of migration; finding solutions
that benefit both destination communities and
the migrants they receive; making it easier for
people to move within their own countries; and
mainstreaming migration into national development
strategies.
The report argues that while many of these
reforms are more feasible than at first thought,
they nonetheless require political courage. There
may also be limits to governments? ability to
make swift policy changes while the recession
persists..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Date of publication:
2009-09-00
Date of entry/update:
2009-10-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Labour migration: global and regional studies, UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)
Language:
English
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Description:
Executive Summary:
"The Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), with a population of 260 million, comprises Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and Yunnan province in China. Despite marked disparities in economic development
between its members, the sub-region is extremely dynamic with annual growth rates averaging above 6 percent in recent years. In the past, economic integration of the GMS countries was hindered by political factors, civil unrest, and sometimes open conflict. However, recently there has been growing momentum to seek new ways to cooperate and enhance economic growth. Labor migration is one of the areas where the benefits to formal cooperation are largest, yet the institutional, political, and technical obstacles to such cooperation are daunting.
Migration has been occurring in the GMS for centuries, largely in an informal and unregulated fashion. In recent years, however, cross-border labor migration within the sub-region has increased sharply. The
combination of demographic transition and upgrading of the skills of its workforce has left Thailand facing a labor shortage of unskilled labor, which migrants from neighboring countries have been more than willing to fill. Indeed, Thailand?s much higher incomes, fast growth, and more favorable social and political climate act as a magnet for people in Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Myanmar trying to escape poverty. For many poor households in the sub-region, migration offers an avenue, sometimes the only one, towards jobs and higher
incomes, albeit often at a high risk to the migrants themselves. For Thailand, migrants represent an important reservoir of cheap and flexible labor, and a boost to its competitiveness in certain sectors. Recent research indicates that more than 2 million migrants have moved between GMS countries in the last few years due to economic reasons. Thailand alone estimates to have 1.5 to 2 million regular and irregular migrants from the GMS currently living in the country and is also home to about 150,000 refugees.
Uneven patterns of development, slowing population growth in Thailand combined with high fertility rates in its neighbors and growing economic integration will ensure that labor mobility in the GMS continues to grow in coming decades. Much of this migration, however, will remain irregular unless greater efforts are made to regulate and manage migration flows. The sending countries generally lack the capacity to properly
manage the mass export of labor and to protect the rights of their migrant-nationals abroad. Receiving countries have fairly weak migration policy frameworks, which often have been implemented hastily as an after-the-fact? response to the arrival of large numbers of migrants. The lack of a legal framework to regulate migration puts migrant workers at a higher risk of abuse, and strengthens the prevalence of smuggling rings, who are also the main actors in human trafficking, be it for sexual exploitation or slave-labor. Absence of an adequate legal and policy framework thus contributes to increasing the costs (and risks) of migration, and to reducing its benefits. GMS governments in both sending and receiving countries face an urgent need to adopt policies that can help manage the increased flows in an efficient yet humane and equitable way."
Source/publisher:
World Bank?
Date of publication:
2006-11-00
Date of entry/update:
2009-01-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
916.73 KB
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Description:
RECOMMENDATIONS:
"1. International migration policies should be aligned with other economic and social development policies.
The Government should consider producing a policy document on international migration and
incorporating its recommendations...
2. Because of the broad range of migration issues that Thailand is facing, the Kingdom would benefit
from a national comprehensive migration management system, with an appropriate coordination
mechanism, that would deal with all types of migration (asylum seekers, regular migrants and irregular
migrants) in an integrated manner...
3. The Thai Government should re-establish a border screening mechanism such as the Provincial
Admissions Boards in order to provide a means to determine which persons crossing the border from
Myanmar are legitimate asylum seekers and deserve the protection of the border camps or the
protection afforded those fleeing political persecution. The Government should broaden the concept
of persons deserving asylum from those ?fleeing fighting” to the definition of a refugee spelled out in
the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees...
4. Thailand would benefit from developing and implementing a strategy that would give Thai overseas
workers a higher level of comparative advantage by targeting more technical occupations... 5. The process of registering for a work permit in Thailand should be simplified and made less expensive
through cooperation among the ministries concerned. The Thai Government should articulate the
rights and obligations of migrant workers and their dependents. Sanctions should also be applied to
employers and others who withhold original registration documents or work permits. The Ministry of
Interior should allow for on-going or renewed registration periods for migrants coupled with adequate
publicity campaigns...
6. The Ministry of Labour should carry out a programme of pro-active random inspection of workplaces
to ensure that they are complying with labour regulations and standards, including the timely payment
of mandated wages...
7. The Ministry of Labour and the police should be more pro-active in investigating workplaces thought
to have trafficked persons and those subjecting workers to abuse and exploitation. When enforcing
laws against trafficking, forced labour and slavery-like conditions, care should be taken to protect the
victims of such practices...
8. HIV/AIDS information and prevention programmes should target such mobile and difficult-to-reach
populations as migrant sex workers, seafarers and other migrant workers. More cross-border
intervention programmes should be implemented.
9. More comprehensive and higher quality research is required in many areas of international migration
affecting Thailand in order to strengthen policy formulation and programme implementation. More
research is required on:
The number and characteristics of Thai nationals overseas;
The number and characteristics of the unregistered migrant population in Thailand;
The situation of children of migrants and migrant children in Thailand without their parents;
The volume and types of trafficking to Thailand;
The incidence and prevalence of HIV/AIDS among migrants;
Effective intervention programmes for migrants in vulnerable situations."
Jerrold W. Huguet, Sureeporn Punpuing
Source/publisher:
International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date of publication:
2005-08-00
Date of entry/update:
2005-09-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
Format :
pdf
Size:
953.21 KB
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Description:
Introduction; ; Notes on terminology;; Popular myths about migrant workers; Labour Migration: Causes and Origins; Reasons for migration; Why do workers migrate? Why do labour-sending countries promote labour migration? What are the economic and structura factors causing migration? Options for countries facing labour shortages; Labour Migration from Asia: Flows and Trends; Migration statistics and data; Migration patterns and trends; Recent trends in Asian labour migration; Most Vulnerable Categories of Migrant Workers in Asia; Women workers: domestic workers and entertainers; Trafficked persons; Irregular migrants; Migrant Workers ? Scapegoats of the Asian Economic Crisis? Protecting the Least Protected?: Some Issues; Protection of migrant workers and international instruments; Protection of migrant workers against abuses and malpractices remains a high priority; Dilemma of labour-sending countries: Promotion of labour emigration and protection of national workers abroad; What role can trade unions play in the protection of migrant workers? Policy Implications and Options.
Piyasiri Wickramasekera
Source/publisher:
International Labour Office
Date of publication:
2002-08-00
Date of entry/update:
2005-05-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
English
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