Pandemic Dramatically Alters Path of Migrant Workers asiafoundation.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from asiafoundation.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Pandemic Dramatically Alters Path of Migrant Workers
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By Suswopna Rimal
Labor migration often reflects such basic human motivations as the desire for a decent life and physical and financial security. Throughout Asia, however, Covid-19 has put labor migration into reverse. As economies went into crisis in 2020 amid pandemic containment measures and mobility restrictions, Asia’s overseas migrant workers were among the first to lose their jobs. Millions returned home, while thousands more found themselves unemployed and stranded abroad. These migrant workers have been dramatically affected by the pandemic in ways that are often underestimated.
Nepali migrant workers have been no exception. We spoke to Chantin (not her real name), from Nepal’s Kavre District, in December 2020. After working for two years as a hospital cleaner in Dubai, she told us, she was laid off due to the pandemic in March 2020 and faced a very difficult return. There were no flights to Nepal, so the c
AI paints dismal picture of human rights in Nepal thehimalayantimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thehimalayantimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Credit: Nepali Times
KATHMANDU, Feb 15 2021 (IPS) - A proposal by Nepal’s Immigration Department requiring consent from a guardian and local government for women under the age of 40 travelling to the Gulf or Africa has sparked public fury, and is taken as yet another proof of a misogynist, bungling bureaucracy.
The Department made the recommendation to the Home Ministry on Wednesday, saying it was needed to curb the trafficking of Nepali women without labour permits, especially to the Gulf countries.
However, instead of clamping down on the ‘setting’ and collusion between recruiters, immigration officials and foreign-based agents to curb trafficking, the restrictions overlook womens’ agency in making decisions, their freedom to travel and work.
The paper says there is an urgent need to create livelihood opportunities for the returning migrant workers displaced by the Covid-19 pandemic.. Read more at straitstimes.com.