Migrants' issues under the spotlight

The word 'migrants' may not be unfamiliar to you. A migrant is someone that moves from one region to another by chance, instinct or plan, or a worker who travels from one area to another in search of work. People migrate for many reasons.

They could be in search of social, economic and cultural opportunities or to escape wars, conflicts and abuse. Migration occurs both within and across state borders.

Over 175 million people, half of them women, are estimated to live and work outside their countries of origin. This include over 159 million international migrants, 16 million refugees fleeing their countries and 900,000 asylum seekers.

Children are also part of this set-up. There are dangers involved in migration however. Some migrants are exploited and abused, while some are injured and even killed while trying to enter countries illegally. Hundreds living in foreign lands have been arrested and deported without any opportunities to legally challenge decisions.

Migrant-related issues will become the focus on December 18, which is International Migrants Day as declared by the United Nations General Assembly.

This is the date in 1990 when the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (Migrant Workers Convention) was adopted.

The Convention came into effect on July 1, 2003, and says all migrants, irrespective of their immigration status, should be able to enjoy certain fundamental rights including the right to be free from poverty, the right to equality before the law and in conditions of work, and the right to urgent medical care. It had been ratified by over 34 states as at 2000 while all states have been urged to do so.

The International Migrants Day focuses attention on the plight of millions of migrants around the world who are denied access to even their basic fundamental rights.

Such abuses are overlooked and even accepted. The UN General Assembly has stressed the need to make further efforts to ensure respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all migrants.

Migrant workers play an important role in the development process of their native as well as host countries. Their skills and labour support the economies of their host countries while the money they send home drives the economies of their own countries.

This is very much true in the case of countries like Sri Lanka, where the national economies are propped up by the thousands of people working abroad. But they are unrecognised, unappreciated and undervalued.

This day honours their contributions to the economies and well-being of their host and home countries and promotes respect for their basic human rights. Families of such migrant workers should also recognise the contributions they have made not only to their families, but to their country.