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Migrant workers' well being
There is no
dispute that the well being of our migrant workers should be
attached topmost priority and we are glad that the government is
going ahead with launching a national health policy for this
category of workers. The contribution of these workers,
materially and otherwise, is so substantial to countries that
the international community has set apart December 18th as
International Migration Day, in recognition of this important
fact.
Although the massive economic contribution of our migrant
workers has been somewhat recognized over the years by the state
and other concerned quarters, until the present moment, their
physical, emotional and spiritual needs went without being fully
addressed. No doubt, many are the state agencies involved in
looking after the interests of our migrant workers but the
working out of a national health policy for these persons is a
landmark in the provision of state welfare measures towards
their general well being. It needs to be also recognized that in
the person of Minister Dilan Perera, these workers have a
care-giver who could be expected to be proactively involved in
achieving some good for them.
Despite the phenomenal contribution of our migrant workers
towards our foreign exchange reserves, we cannot help but feel
that they have been 'taken for granted' all these years,
although under the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration their
condition is being closely monitored and their needs met to the
extent possible. However, the factual position now is that the
country cannot do without these workers, considering the bearing
their earnings have on keeping the local economy going. We are
duty-bound to ensure the constant well being of these workers
and it is in the fitness of things that the maximum welfare
measures are accorded to them.
However, there could be no let-up in qualitatively improving
the condition of these workers who are in the main poor and are
among the marginalized of our polity. A health insurance scheme
for these persons, for instance, comes as a stitch in time
because it is abundantly clear that they are up against a
multitude of health and other hazards in their places of work
abroad, whether the latter be private residences or otherwise.
Besides, they are in need of counseling services and other means
of emotional well being because emotional deprivation too could
be part of their lot. We are glad that the government is taking
full cognizance of these needs and is initiating the necessary
measures to alleviate these conditions.
Our position is that these workers should be fully empowered
to meet the challenges of their countries of employment. The
very scandalous and tragic happenings centering on some of our
workers abroad, including instances of not only emotional and
sexual abuse but also of murder, should draw the attention of
every relevant quarter to the highly vulnerable position of
these workers. It is the obligation of the state and other
relevant stakeholders to ensure that our migrant workers are
guarded against every conceivable danger and hazard.
Likewise, the lot of the families these workers leave behind
should be lightened to the fullest. We would not be saying
anything new by stating that some of these workers virtually
leave their families to their own devices by going abroad in
search of the proverbial pot of gold. While the country stands
to gain in terms of economic well being through such labour
migrations, the social consequences of these changes could be
quite disquieting. One such grave consequence takes the form of
family break-ups. Abandoned children are another tragic
fall-out. Accordingly, every conceivable aspect of the lives of
our migrant workers needs to be looked into. Besides, general
welfare measures, they and their families are badly in need of
psych-social support and this and many other requirements should
be met systematically to make the lives of these workers worth
living. |
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How Lankan migrant worker sustains the economy
December 18 is designated International Migrant’s
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