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Flawed policies expose migrants to abuse: HRW

Many governments’ immigration policies and protection gaps expose migrants to abuse, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report Sunday in advance of International Migrants Day, which falls on Dec

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Mon, December 13, 2010

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Flawed policies expose migrants to abuse: HRW

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any governments’ immigration policies and protection gaps expose migrants to abuse, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report Sunday in advance of International Migrants Day, which falls on Dec. 18.

The abuses include labor exploitation, violence, trafficking, mistreatment in detention and killings, yet the nations involved offer limited recourse to seek justice, HRW said.

HRW’s 48-page roundup reporting on violations of migrants’ rights in 2010 includes coverage of Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the US.

“Migrants are consistently among those at highest risk of abuse, but also among those least likely to have access to services or justice,” HRW senior women’s rights researcher Nisha Varia said.

“Many governments make things worse with policies that aggravate discrimination or make it hard for migrants to even approach authorities for help.”

More than 215 million people live outside their country of birth, according to the UN. International migration helps fuel economies across the globe. The World Bank estimates that migrants sent home more than US$440 billion in 2010, $325 billion of which went to developing countries.

Many countries rely on migrant workers to fill labor shortages in low-paying, dangerous, and poorly regulated jobs. HRW documented labor exploitation and barriers to redress for migrants in agriculture, domestic work, and construction in Indonesia, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, the UAE and the US.

The organization said immigration sponsorship systems in many countries gave employers immense control over workers, leading to migrants being trapped in abusive situations or unable to pursue redress through the justice system.

HRW also found that men, women, and children risk their lives to cross borders, and may face abuse while in no-man’s lands between border checkpoints, on the high seas, or at the international zones of airports.

Migrants detained in prisons, sometimes unnecessarily, may experience discrimination and face worse conditions or less access to healthcare than non-migrant prison populations.

“Whether men, women and children are crossing borders through appropriate channels or not, they should not lose their life in the process,” Varia said.

“Governments should be ashamed of border control and screening policies that can lead to abuse or death, and that fail those who may be in most need of aid, including unaccompanied children, trafficking victims, and refugees.”

In the US, hundreds of thousands of people are in detention for months — or even years for civil immigration violations. Lacking the right to a government-appointed attorney, approximately 60 percent of migrant detainees go through all court hearings without a lawyer.

“The list of abuses against migrants in 2010 is long and grim,” Varia said. “Governments need to jump-start the pace of reforms to avoid another year filled with abuses and injustices.”

HRW called on governments to improve protections for migrants, including ratifying the International Covenant on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families.

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