Nalini Singh
APWLD's Programme Officer for Labour and Migration Programme
Lisa Noor Humidah
Komnas Perempuan, Indonesia/APWLD member

After a three day regional meeting of civil society organisations, migrant workers associations and national human rights institutions from eight countries across Asia, the participants called for the urgent review of protections systems of the human rights of migrant workers especially those of undocumented and women domestic migrant workers. The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights of Migrants also participated in the three day meeting.

The meeting was held from 25-27 July, 2006, in Jakarta, Indonesia, a very timely meeting as Indonesia is one of the biggest countries of origin for domestic migrant workers to countries in Asia and the Middle East. The participants of the meeting concurred that undocumented migrant workers lie outside any effective human rights protection systems, as they are subject to criminalisation and deportation with no means of redress. Their very existence is denied, both by the governments of their countries of employment as well as by their own government's in the countries of origin.

Women migrant workers who are employed as domestic workers are also beyond the reach of existing human rights protection systems. These women face human rights violations which occur persistently with impunity as they live in isolation n private homes of their employers without any recognition as workers.

Participants of the regional meeting called on the national human rights institutions of Asia, both in countries of origin and destination, to take tangible measures to implement their mandate of providing human rights protection for undocumented migrant workers and women domestic workers. This should be based on the principle of universality of human rights. And in the process, the participation of migrant workers and the groups working on their issues is essential.

As the first step, the participants of the meeting launched a comprehensive Asia region wide review of the existing human rights protection system for undocumented migrant workers and women domestic migrant workers, in order to identify gaps in:
a. national and cross-border complaints mechanisms;
b. in the human rights documentation and reporting systems;
c. in the capacities of national human rights institutions to mainstream migrant rights in their work; and
d. in the inter-linkages between (civil society and state) institutions which provide services for rehabilitation, compensation and reintegration for abused migrants.

The review, to be completed by the end of this year, will serve as a basis for the development of a regional plan of action to increase effectiveness of the human rights protection system for undocumented migrant workers and women domestic migrant workers in Asia.

To initiate this plan of activities and oversee its implementation, a seven member core group on the Jakarta Process on Migrants' Human Rights, of which APWLD is a part of, has been established. The core group will actively communicate with other groups on this initiative such as the Working Group for an ASEAN Regional Human Rights Mechanism, the Asia Pacific Forum of national human rights institutions and the ILO's multilateral initiative on migrant workers. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants and the UN Office of the High Commission on Human Rights will be actively engaged in this process.