"Bread and Roses" represent the demands of women workers for equal pay for equal work a century ago. Today HOME continues this historic struggle for migrant domestic workers as we call on government, employers and stakeholders to recognise ‘Domestic Workers as Workers’ and accord them protection under national labour legislation. HOME in solidarity with the region is signatory to a joint declaration calling for the adoption of an International Convention on Domestic Work and to support May Day 2010 as Asian Domestic Workers’ Day.

We, the undersigned, call for the adoption by 2011 of an International Convention on Domestic Work, together with clear guidelines on monitoring and implementation, reporting and compliance mechanisms. We believe an ILO Convention will significantly contribute to the reduction of slavery like conditions, abuse, violence, exploitation, inequality, and discrimination against women and domestic workers. It will help reduce the worst forms of child labour, the stigmatization and criminalization of migrant domestic workers, and racial and ethnic discrimination.

On May Day 2010, we call on everyone to support and celebrate the “Asian Domestic Workers’ Day.” We, the domestic workers’ groups, trade unions, migrant organizations, women’s groups, civil society and advocates in Asia and globally will march together in solidarity as we demand for the recognition and respect of rights, value, contributions, and status of domestic workers as workers and equal members of society.

We thank you for your support in the combat against human trafficking and labour exploitation.


President

It was a job offer they found hard to resist. With a promised salary of $3000 a month, the 3 women were told all they needed to do was provide entertainment as singers at a night club. This wasn’t something that the women who hail from Fujian province in China were new to. Indeed they had been working as singers in the entertainment industry while they were in China. However, with promises of more money, they thought they’d try their out their luck in Singapore.

The work permit cards issued to them stated that they were ‘performance artistes’. In fact, that was what they were led to believe when they paid up $3000 each to their agent in China. However, they were soon to find out that singing wasn’t the only thing that was expected of them. Their boss, an owner of a KTV pub told them that their job responsibilities also involved making male customers ‘happy.’ They were asked to hand over their passports for ‘safe keeping’. To make things worse, the employer demanded that they give $1000 every month to the company as a fee to ‘offset their expenses.’ The women refused to comply with all the new conditions. They were especially shocked that they were expected to perform sexual services. A deadline was given to them: if they refused to comply, their permits would be cancelled and they would be repatriated to China. Desperate, the women ran away and came to HOME for assistance. We are providing them with shelter and food. Their cases are now under investigation by the Ministry of Manpower.

HOME handled a similar case of a Thai woman, Nan, who was brought to Singapore under the pretext that she would be working as a cook. To her horror, she was brought to a forest brothel in Lim Chu Kang where she was expected to provide sexual services to foreign workers housed in nearby dormitories. Fortunately for her, she managed to alert Max, her German boyfriend who was helped by the Foundation for Women in Thailand to alert HOME in Singapore. She was finally rescued from her predicament after calling our President, Bridget Tan. However, after her rescue the Anti Vice police wanted to charge her in court for overstaying. HOME bailed her out of the Woman's Changi Prison and engaged our pro bono lawyer, Mr. Lim Tan Guy who appealed successfully for her release from the charge for her over staying 'offence'. Nan is now happily married to Max and living in Germany.

The experiences of these women are common among the estimated 1.2 million people who are trafficked annually both across and within national borders. Trafficked persons are those who have been coerced or deceived into situations that are often exploitative or abusive in nature. Some victims don’t have a clue about what they are getting themselves into. Others are aware, but have no choice because they have been compelled into it. There are also those who are aware but who do not expect to be plunged into exploitative working conditions akin to slavery.

Destination countries like Singapore should enact anti- human trafficking laws with the appropriate mechanisms to identify, support and protect the victims of human trafficking, rather than treating them as immigration offenders. The United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (also known as the Palermo Protocol) for example, recommends that governments should make provisions for appropriate housing, medical treatment and counselling of victims, and to provide victims with information on their legal rights.

Countries like the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia have enacted anti human trafficking laws. Singapore is one of the many countries around the world that have not done so.

A new initiative to combat human trafficking has been launched by HOME. As a part of the launch, we conducted a forum on March 21, 2010 at the RELC Hotel. Volunteers, local university students and workers joined the HOME management as well as legal experts from the region to discuss the issue of human trafficking in the region.

Lawyer Dr Rina Shahriyani Shahrullah talked about the Anti-Trafficking Law 21 of 2007 by Indonesia, both a source and destination for human trafficking victims. This legislation provided a legal definition on human trafficking and imposed a penalty of three to 15 years in Prison, a fine of 120-600 million Indonesian Rupiah, with the punishment increased by 1/3, if the victim is seriously injured or mentally ill. If the victim dies as a result, the penalty could be increased to life imprisonment.

Malaysian lawyer Daniel Loh also outlined his country's anti-human trafficking legislation. It was enacted into law in 2008, as a response to the US State Department's ranking of human rights. The aim of the government was to raise Malaysia's ranking from tier 3, making it liable to economic sanctions, to tier 2. Both Daniel and Dr Rina pointed out that the legislation had come into effect after years of groundwork laid at the grassroots level by students, activists and researchers. Daniel called on those present to volunteer their skills and services, help create awareness and raise funds for the cause here in Singapore. Singapore is a signatory of the ASEAN Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers, but unlike the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, does not have a specific anti-human trafficking law in place. Currently the rights of the workers are safeguarded in Singapore under general legislation such as the Women's Charter and the Penal Code.

However HOME founder and president Bridget Tan felt that there is a need for an anti-human trafficking law to bring about greater protection and social support for human trafficking victims. At present, the problem many of the victims would choose to return home, rather than remain in Singapore to help prosecute their traffickers, as they are unable to work and have no housing for the duration of the trial. Bridget reiterated the need to continue HOME's work of providing shelter, as well as the need to use education to prevent future cases, and providing advocacy work to help in the prosecution of such cases. With a grant from the Lee Foundation, HOME will be engaging a new staff member to focus on this area. A hotline will be set up to allow victims to ring up for assistance. A separate shelter will also be set up to house these victims, as they would have differing needs from others currently being sheltered by homes.

For a detailed report of the forum, please email us.

It was both a tribute and a reminder of the often-forgotten strength of women who leave their families and homes for the purpose of giving their loved ones better lives. Six storeys above the usual Sunday bustle of Lucky Plaza, it was practically standing room only at the HOME office. Over 50 volunteers, domestic workers and shelter residents gathered for a late morning session.

Respecting the presence of both Filipino and Indonesian ladies present, the hour began with alternate Catholic and Muslim prayers for divine blessings over the women and the multiple identities they take on as mothers, grandmothers, wives, daughters and domestic workers away from home, and the dignity they have in each one of these roles.

Norida was one of the Indonesians present who shared her story. At the age of 17, she, as the second of seven children, came to Singapore to work, in order to support her family. "I have to think about the future of my brothers and sisters, so I sacrifice my future for them," she said, adding proudly that her brothers were now all in university. Marilyn, a Filipina who has worked here for 18 years, also singlehandedly put her two children, now 21 and 19, through university. 6 1⁄2 years after arriving, she learnt that her husband back home was having an affair with her cousin. Dealing with this difficult news away from home, she steeled herself to focus on supporting her children and family. Now her happiness she said, was that in another two years, her children will graduate with their university degrees. Luz, another Filipina who arrived here in 1970, highlighted the plight of women stranded here due to bad work situations, who are unable to return home because they didn't have money. She emphasised the importance of providing skills training for the workers here, so they would be able to independently upgrade themselves in the future.

Having been in the same situation, Luz exhorted the women to be strong and faithful, and to protect their families by resisting going to other men in the long time they are away. Their situations were simply summarised by one of the workers present: "It's nicer that you are with your family but sometimes we don't have (that) choice."

In that short hour in the safe confines of that small room, honesty and heartfelt emotions flowed freely, as these women from different backgrounds supported one another with empathy and sincerity, refreshed for another week as the mother/daughter/wife/worker they are.

This forum is held to support the coming June's International Labour Conference in Geneva to decide on a Domestic Worker Convention - setting labour standards for domestic work. The speakers on the panel are the experts being domestic workers themselves.

Interested? Please email us to express your interest.
We will notify you of further event details, thank you.