Task Force On ASEAN Migrant Workers

19/07/2026

TFAMW at the 2nd Regional Forum on the ASCC Strategic Plan, 1–3 July 2026

The Task Force on ASEAN Migrant Workers (TFAMW) participated in the 2nd Regional Forum on the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Strategic Plan, themed "Mainstreaming the Strategic Plan into Regional, National, and Local Development Plans," held from 1–3 July 2026 at the ASEAN Headquarters in Jakarta.

TFAMW welcomes the space created for stakeholders alongside Member States, planning agencies and development partners, and the launch of the "Voices of the People of ASEAN" compendium is a step towards recognising that the Strategic Plan belongs to the peoples of ASEAN, not only to its institutions.

But recognition on paper is not the same as participation in practice. If mainstreaming is to mean anything, it cannot remain a top-down exercise of cascading regional plans into national and local documents. It must work the other way too, it needs to be grounded in the lived realities of communities, workers, and especially the region's migrant workers, whose contributions sustain ASEAN's economies yet whose voices are too often the last to be heard in the rooms where plans are made.

TFAMW's consistent position over two decades remains: genuine stakeholder engagement means civil society at the table from design through implementation and monitoring — not consulted after the fact. We call on the ASEAN Secretariat and Member States to institutionalise regular, structured engagement with CSOs and migrant worker organisations at national and local levels, where implementation actually happens. TFAMW stands ready, as we always have, to do this work together.

— Mr. Soe Min Than, Coordinator, Task Force on ASEAN Migrant Workers

03/07/2026

https://media.un.org/unifeed/en/asset/d355/d3559058

22 April 2026
Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR):
“Indonesia’s new Domestic Workers Protection Law marks a breakthrough to protect over 4 million domestic workers - the vast majority of whom are women. This law recognises domestic workers as formal workers, moving them out of the informal and unregulated economy. This regulates recruitment, working conditions, and protections for domestic workers. We encourage other States in the region and beyond to similarly take measures to legally recognise and protect the human and labour rights of the tens of millions of domestic workers worldwide, who provide vital care and support to families, societies and economies. It is essential that the Indonesian authorities now move swiftly to implement this law, to make its protections real and effective in the every day lives of domestic workers. Around the world, domestic workers are undervalued, under-protected and under-represented. This is an historic opportunity to turn the tables on this neglect and to protect, respect and honour their invaluable contribution to the welfare of so many people.”

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today welcomed the passage by Indonesia’s Parliament of the Domestic Workers Protection Law. “Indonesia’s new Domestic Workers Protection Law marks a breakthrough to protect over 4 million domestic workers - the vast majority of whom are women,” Office spok...

06/11/2025

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝟵𝟯 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗹𝗮𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗮!

Malaysia's Shah Alam High Court has upheld over RM760,000 (US$170,000) in damages for workers who were left stranded without jobs after arriving in 2023. The court ruled that migrant workers cannot be treated as a "reserve labour pool" and must be paid from their date of arrival.

We extend our gratitude to lawyers Joachim Xavier and Sahain Nada Puthucheary for their pro bono representation. Their dedication made this outcome possible.

𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘚𝘌𝘈𝘕 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘴
This case demonstrates strong alignment with the 2017 ASEAN Consensus on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Migrant Workers (:

✅ Article 12 & 20: Right to file grievances and labour complaints with access to justice, and to continue staying in the Receiving State pending disposal of the case
✅ Article 13: Right to freedom of movement in the Receiving State
✅ Articles 18 & 38: Fair and appropriate remuneration
✅ Article 31: Protection from exploitation, abuse, and violence
✅ Article 43: Access to legal recourse and assistance
✅ Article 47: Recognition of employment contracts
✅ Article 57: Cooperation to resolve cases of workers who, through no fault of their own, become undocumented

𝘈 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦
Importantly, these workers were not detained or deported while their case was pending. They maintained freedom of movement and were eventually able to secure alternative employment with Maersk. This is particularly significant given that they exercised their right to "change employment" when their original employment was fraudulent from the start. Malaysia's system recognized them as workers with legitimate rights, not as irregular migrants to be detained.

𝘎𝘢𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨
Media reports reveal these workers were victims of a recruitment syndicate using fake documents to obtain quotas. While labour courts protected them, criminal prosecution failed. This highlights enforcement gaps in:

📋 Article 52: Regulating and supervising recruitment agencies to eliminate malpractices
🛡️ Article 53: Preventing trafficking and establishing systems to identify victims
💻 Article 54: Information-sharing systems to enhance policies

𝘈 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯
This case underscores opportunities for all ASEAN member states to strengthen collaboration between receiving and sending countries, in line with the spirit and principles of the ASEAN Consensus and 2007 Cebu Declaration:

🤝 Enhanced coordination on recruitment oversight
📡 Improved information-sharing between countries of origin and destination
⚖️ Stronger criminal law frameworks against fraudulent recruiters
🎓 Pre-departure orientation programmes (Article 22)

Their case shows that when labour protections are enforced, migrant workers can access justice, while also revealing where prevention mechanisms across the region still need strengthening.

𝘚𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥: 𝘩𝘵𝘵𝘱𝘴://𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘯.𝘰𝘳𝘨/𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬/𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘯-𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘴-𝘰𝘯-𝘵𝘩𝘦-𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯-𝘢𝘯𝘥-𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯-𝘰𝘧-𝘵𝘩𝘦-𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴-𝘰𝘧-𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘵-𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘳𝘴-2/