S Asian countries not united to address exploitations faced by migrants in destination countries: Experts

Migration experts at a seminar on Tuesday (23 April) highlighted the common exploitation faced by South Asian migrant workers in Middle Eastern countries. However, they expressed concern about the lack of unity among South Asian countries in tackling these worker challenges.

"The lack of unity among South Asian migrant-origin countries is preventing destination countries from amending laws related to worker protection and rights," said Tasneem Siddiqui, founding chair of the Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit (RMMRU).

The Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) in collaboration with the Consortium of South Asian Think Tanks and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung organised the regional seminar, "Labour migrants from South Asia: issues and concern", at its auditorium in the capital.

She noted that migration agreements are usually signed on a bilateral basis, adding, "As migrant-origin countries, we tend to view each other as competitors. We fail to perceive the migration issue from a broader perspective."

"Over the years, the influx of migrants from South Asia, including Bangladesh, has risen. However, wages and labour rights have not been addressed in a mutually beneficial manner for both employers and workers. Furthermore, there exists a disparity between outward migrants and inward remittances," Tasneem Siddiqui added.

According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), in 2017, the number of individuals from the South Asian region residing abroad was estimated to be slightly over 38 million, a significant increase from the figure of just over 23 million recorded in 1990.

The GCC member-countries of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Kuwait emerged as the preferred destinations for migrants from South Asia, hosting nearly 15 million individuals from the region.

At the seminar, migration experts said poor living conditions, loneliness, physical and mental torture, sexual abuse, lack of basic needs, low wages and wage theft, and high migration costs are the major challenges faced by the workers both in the destinations and countries of origin.

Prime Minister's Economic Affairs Adviser Mashiur Rahman, as the chief guest, said, "While there are ILO standards for migrant workers, enforcement remains a challenge. This difficulty is not unique to the Middle East; it is also a formidable task for any international or UN organisation to ensure compliance with their regulations."

"Ensuring compliance depends on the willingness of the host country and also the enforcement capacity of the International organisations," he said.

Regarding the feasibility of training individuals specifically for overseas employment, Mashiur Rahman said, "I do not believe that is achievable. Without a sufficiently robust domestic education and skill development framework, it is impossible to isolate specific skill demands and train individuals for them. Additionally, it entails substantial expenditure."

Additionally, there is some mismatch between what is demanded and what we can supply, he added.

Shariful Hasan, head of the BRAC Migration Programme, said, "South Asian countries should move together to ensure the same minimum wage and protection mechanism for their migrant workers in Middle Eastern destinations."

Nalin Herath, acting director general of the Institute of National Security Studies, Colombo, said that there should be some regulatory mechanism to mitigate the challenges of migrants such as mandatory skills, minimum wages, age limits, and employers' pay model for migration.

Ambassador AFM Gousal Azam Sarker, chairman of BIISS, presided over the seminar, while Major General Md Abu Bakar Siddique Khan, director general of BIISS, and Nishchal N Pandey, convener of COSATT, delivered welcome addresses.