Friday, March 29, 2013

Making The Invisible, Visible: The First Step...


There are nearly 52 million domestic workers worldwide and about 300,000 in Malaysia. Many of them are immigrants looking for job opportunities that their homecountry does not offer. A large amount of domestic workers migrate to foreign countries in order to sustain their families back at home. They see this as their only choice so they don't see the possible risks, like being sexually and mentally abused by their employers or they could also be forced to work without getting payed. Many of these domestic workers never get to go back and see their families again. They're trapped in a foreign country where they don't know anyone and no one knows their whereabouts. 

This is a despicable and inhumane act. These people should get to go back to their families or at least get taken to a non-abusive household. They have rights, their personal experiences should be heard and they should be taken care of. We cannot allow this to happen to any more people. We have to put an end to domestic worker trafficking and take them to a safer place. But how can we send them back to their home countries if there are no opportunities for them there? That is why countries have to get involved, this is not just a matter of finding the traffickers and locking them up, we need to assure these people they will be safe and stable in their countries. 


Something I found incredibly shocking was this article about Linda and how she was offered a job in a Malaysian store but somehow ended up locked in a room with men being sent in everyday.  She tried escaping but it seemed impossible, she started feeling sick so she was sent to a hospital and was told she was pregnant with HIV. She was devastated. I find this completely heart breaking. Many of these people migrate to other countries just to get a better life, but they don't know what's coming. We need to help people like Linda...not in a few years or months, but now.