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IYCW STATEMENT INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY - 2023

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“Being migrant workers or refugees is not our dream. But because there is no other choice to survive, in order to improve our welfare and that of our families"

December 18 is International Migrant Day, since it was established by the ILO in 2000. Of course, every commemoration day has an important reason and history for everyone, so it is always celebrated every year.

We, the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) is in solidarity in the commemoration of International Migrants Day 2023. Youth migration and refugees are one of the priority actions of our movement.

“My name is Sharon and I am 23 years old. Currently I am working in an Export Processing Zone in Sri Lanka as logistician. I migrated to Colombo from my village to find work. However, I still dreaming to go to South Korea for work, because I feel that here in Sri Lanka, my career development is quite low and likewise the income is very low. I am the bread winner in the family. I have one younger sibling. My mother works in an ice cream factory and my father is a fisherman. Our combined salary is just enough for our daily needs, but not able to plan our future.”

The conditions and reality of why there are so many migrant workers today, is due to the difficulty in finding jobs in their own country. There are some jobs available, however the salary is not compensated well. Many young people cannot afford the daily living costs like paying house rent, foods, health and everyday fare. In many developing countries, people's purchasing power is decreasing while poverty is increasing. The youth unemployment is on the rise forcing them to migrate from rural villages to cities or to another countries to find Work. Like Sharon, most of them aims of changing the fate of their lives and of their families to be better. They only dream to find a better job with good salary so that they can send money back home to support their family needs.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) states that the increasing pace of economic globalization has created more migrant workers than before. An estimated of 73 percent of the migrants are workers. This translates to millions of workers and their families traveling to countries other than their own in search of work. The ILO estimates that there are approximately 244 million migrants worldwide, representing 3.3 percent of the global population.

However, migration is not only limited due to lack of work in one country. There are also called the forced-migration due to war and socio-economic conflicts. There are many asylum seekers seeking refuge for the protection of their right to life. Not a few of the refugees also end up having to look for work in the country where they fled.

Migrant workers contribute to the economy of the host countries, as well as the remittances they send to their families help improve the economy of their home countries. However, many migrant workers lack social protection and are vulnerable to exploitation and human trafficking. Skilled migrant workers are less vulnerable to exploitation, but their departure deprives the development of their own countries of valuable labor needed for their own economies.

Migrants are human too. Therefore, in commemorating the International Migrant Day this year, we invite all IYCW members throughout the world, to voice the rights of the migrant workers, and call for the protection and support for the refugees. Sending and receiving country must ensure and provide legal protection and equal rights to all migrant workers, regardless of age, color, religion and race. That all government must adhere to the International Labor Standards as defined by the ILO Convention 97 and 143.

WE CALL FOR EQUALITY, JUSTICE AND JUST WORK FOR A DIGNIFIED LIFE!

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