Regional fishing migrant workers’ labour rights to be protected
The first National Consultative Dialogue of “Ship to Shore Rights South East Asia”, a four-year (2020-2024) programme, was held on Friday in Phnom Penh.
The programme is implemented by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The Delegation of the European Union to Cambodia on Friday said that during the dialogue session, representatives from the government stakeholders, employers, workers and civil society discussed on the new programme, how they could work together to support and promote safe labour condition of migrant workers in the fishing and seafood processing sectors in South East Asia.
Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training secretary of state, Hou Vudthy had said during the session that he welcomed the programme as the participants can brainstorm as to how to further strengthen the legal frameworks to protect labour rights and empower migrant workers in the fishing and seafood processing sectors in the region including that of Cambodians.
“This programme will be implemented from now until 2024 to improve the rights of migrant workers out in the seas with technical support from ILO, UNDP and IOM with funding from EU,” he added.
To implement this region programme, he said, the consultative dialogue session discussed how to protect migrant workers and promote their rights.
He added that the creation of a National Programme Advisory Committee led by key stakeholders is necessary for the new programme to achieve its goals.
Meanwhile, Bryan Fornari, head of the cooperation section of the EU in Cambodia said this regional programme addresses the critical challenges experienced by migrant workers who are out in the sea who need even more protection amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.”
He added that to have a safe and regular migration in the region, the EU needs to continue to cooperate with the Cambodian government as well as with regional governments, stakeholders, and the UN.
Benjamin Harkins, ILO technical officer for the programme Ship and Shore Rights South East Asia, said that ILO welcomed the commitments made by key stakeholders to protect and promote the rights of Cambodian workers in the fishing and seafood processing sectors.
He said that migrant workers in these sectors experienced severe labour rights abuses during their recruitment and employment.
“We are very pleased to reach an agreement on a strong work plan of activities that will directly respond to the labour protection needs of these workers,” he added.
According to ILO, the Ship to Shore Rights South East Asia Programme had successfully responded to the urgent needs of the Cambodian migrant workers in Thailand, especially in the fishing and seafood processing sectors.
Following ILO, to date, the programme has provided funding for emergency relief to more than 2,300 migrant workers.
Currently, stakeholders are discussing to extend this programme to also provide assistance to address the violations of human rights faced by migrant workers as a whole during the pandemic.