News

Hon. Mu Sochua and Hon. Son Chhay recently requested the Singaporean and Malaysian embassies to immediately furnish copies of bilateral agreements on migrant workers with Cambodia to their offices. Hon. Mu Sochua and Hon Son Chhay are both members of the official opposition in Cambodia, the Cambodia National Rescue Party as well as the Asian Inter-Parliamentary Caucus on Labour Migration. They argued that the development of these...

The Asian Inter-Parliamentary Caucus on Labour Migration met for the 7th consecutive year in Bangkok, Thailand on November 22-24th, 2013. The conference was organized by Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), Friedrich‐Ebert‐Stiftung (FES), Congressional Committee on Overseas Workers’ Affairs (COWA), and UN Women for the convening of the largest parliamentary conference since its inception in 2007. Fifty participants were brought together that...

It has been ten months since the enforced disappearance of Mr. Sombath Somphone, a human rights activist and “one of the most respected and influential voices for sustainable people-centered and just economic and social development in Laos.”  Mr. Somphone was last seen in Vientiane on the evening of 15 December 2012 when he was driving home in his jeep.  CCTV footage became two days after his disappearance showing Sombath...

The Asian Inter-Parliamentary Caucus has focused on social protection for the last few years, as this is a very important issue for migrant workers in Asia. Social security is based on national systems, often explicitly excluding non-nationals from coverage. In addition, many migrant workers (especially migrant women) are employed in the informal sector, which traditionally falls outside of social security system coverage. We would...