Documents and Statements
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This page presents some of the documents and statements of which Penang Stop Human Trafficking Campaign has been part. In seeking solutions to the many issues related to human trafficking, modern day slavery, and the abuse and marginalisation of groups of people like refugees and migrant workers, Penang Stop Human Trafficking has consistently urged a comprehensive approach.
We have joined with others to urge a comprehensive assessment of the many factors related to labour migration in Malaysia (and the region) so that a comprehensive policy can be developed to address all the issues coherently. Ad-hoc, one-off initiatives have not and will not work. We have done the same with regard to human trafficking. And with regard to our approach to refugees in this country. The first three documents below relate to this.
We also sadly have to issue statements responding to particular events. This is sad because it indicates how little is being done to address the issues, and that the people who suffer (and in some cases, die) are women, men and children from refugee and migrant communities. We carry examples of these statements below.
Towards a Comprehensive Policy on Labour Migration for Malaysia
This report is the work of the Migrant Workers Right to Redress Coalition, of which we are a member.
Its Introduction provides the context of why a holistic approach is necessary and what steps are available. The seven sections then provide recommendations for policy actions on a range of crucial issues relating to the recruitment and employment of migrant workers and refugees.
All of these recommendations came out of a series of roundtables with a wide range of stakeholders, including government.
This report has been used to lobby the new federal government, not least via the on-going government-appointed Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers (see next document).
It has recently been updated to reflect any new developments and to include reference to the employment of foreign spouses; the main approaches and recommendations still remain the same.
Human Trafficking in Malaysia: Proposals for Action
The Penang Stop Human Trafficking Campaign has been consistently engaged in lobbying government agencies and others responsible for combatting human trafficking. We have consistently highlighted key areas for action, as summarised in the document here. Please download and lend your voice to the advocacy goals.
Child Marriage In the Rohingya Community in Penang
Picture: freeforall blog
Child Marriage is found in nearly all communities in Malaysia, and is an issue too in the refugee communities, perhaps especially the Rohingya. This community-inspired documentation outlines the factors behind the choices to marry young. These include that it is at the moment legal, and tied to factors of poverty, vulnerability (refugees have no status), 'protection' for daughters which includes lack of options for both girls and boys, and gender and cultural norms.
This Report aksod escribes the connection to human trafficking and people smuggling.
The approaches and sort of content needed to tackle the issue are outlined in the later sections of the Report, something that the Penang Stop Human Trafficking Campaign/ASPIRE Penang are putting into practice in partnership with PS The Children. Workshops with community religious leaders, women and men are on-going and will result in a community-based action plan. Watch this space.
A Framework for Action relating to Refugees
The Penang Stop Human Trafficking Campaign has been working very closely with refugee communities in Penang, for many years. Many of our members are refugees and the community-building and empowerment is a cornerstone of our work.
Despite various promises, refugees continue to have no rights at all in Malaysia: there is no legal or administrative framework which gives refugee women, men and children any status.
They, therefore, remain unprotected; their employment is as ‘undocumented workers’, with all the attendant vulnerabilities that bring; children have no access to mainstream education. human traffickers and modern-day slavers flourish in these situations. On-going lobby to change this has brought many groups together recently, and let’s hope that something changes quickly and for the better.
MWR2R Coalition Submission to the government-appointed Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers, November 2018
In 2018, the government established an Indpendent Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers, to collect evidence relating to the situations faced by different migrant workers (including refugees) and to make recommendations for appropriatre poilicy responses.
The Committee toured the country holding a series of open meetings and hearing submissions. Members of the Migrant Workers Right to Redress Coalition made a series of recommendations, based on the Report above (Towards a Comprehenvie Policy on Labour Migration for Malaysia), supplemented by individual recommendations.
The Committee then brought together all the different evidence into a report which it submitted to Cabiner in early 2019. Sadly this weas not made public and we still await any new policy initiative arising freom this.
We haven't quite given up hope but.......we look forward to significant and major changes being made as soon as possible.
Questions for the Bukit Kukus Enquiry, November 2018
Tragedies such as recently occurred at Bukit Kukus in Penang remind us of how little concern is being shown by developers, contractors, federal, state and local government, and other parties, in terms of ensuring people and environment are safe.
These are man-made ‘disasters’ in which workers die.
The statement attached here sums up some of the concerns.
We do hope that we won’t have to issue similar statements in the future, but given the lack of concern and response from the authorities, we are sadly pretty sure this will not be the last.
