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"They deceived us at every step" : abuse of Cambodian domestic workers migrating to Malaysia / [Jyotsna Poudyal].
Poudyal, Jyotsna.; Human Rights Watch (Organization)
2011
HD6072.2.M4 P68 2011 (Map It)
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Author
Poudyal, Jyotsna.
Title
"They deceived us at every step" : abuse of Cambodian domestic workers migrating to Malaysia / [Jyotsna Poudyal].
Published
[New York, N.Y.] : Human Rights Watch, [2011]
Copyright
©2011
Call Number
HD6072.2.M4 P68 2011
Variant Title
Abuse of Cambodian domestic workers migrating to Malaysia
ISBN
1564328236
9781564328236
Language Note
Text in English; summary and recommendations also available in Khmer.
Description
1 volume (104 pages) : illustrations ; 26 cm
System Control No.
(OCoLC)759935570
Summary
"In order to support themselves and their families, and with few opportunities at home, between 40,000 to 50,000 Cambodian domestic workers have migrated to Malaysia since 2008. These women and girls often experience exploitation during the labor migration process, which is largely facilitated by recruitment agencies. "They Deceived Us at Every Step" examines the migration of Cambodian women and girls as domestic workers to Malaysia and the failure of the Cambodian and Malaysian governments to protect them from abuse and exploitation. The report is based on 80 in-depth interviews in Cambodia and Malaysia with migrant workers and members of their families, representatives of local and international organizations, and government officials. Recruitment agents in Cambodia forge fraudulent identity documents to recruit children, offer cash and food incentives as loans that leave migrants deeply indebted, and confine recruits in training centers for months without access to adequate food, water and medical care. The initial loans, recruitment costs, and inflated fees can trap domestic workers in a cycle of debt that makes opting out of migrating impossible. Once in Malaysia, domestic workers are excluded from national labor laws and are vulnerable to a range of abuses. This report documents forcible confinement in the workplace, long working hours for little or no pay, lack of adequate food and medical care, and cases of physical and sexual abuse. When abuses occur, domestic workers have little recourse for protection from the Malaysian government. The Cambodian embassy in Malaysia lacks adequate staff, skills, and resources to deal with domestic workers coming forward with complaints of abuse. A climate of impunity and sometimes the complicity of Cambodian authorities in abuses lie at the heart of the exploitation of domestic workers. The report recommends stronger regulation and monitoring of recruitment agencies in Cambodia, labor law reforms in Malaysia, and effective access to support services and channels of redress in both countries."--P. [4] of cover.
Note
"November 2011"--Table of contents page.
"This report was written by Jyotsna Poudyal, Alan R. and Barbara D. Finberg Fellow for 2010-2011 in the Women's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch."--P. 104.
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Human Rights Watch (Organization)
Summary and Key Recommendations
Methodology
I. Background
Migration of Cambodian Women and Girls
Migration of Cambodian Domestic Workers to Malaysia
The Migration Cycle
II. Recruitment-Related Exploitation and Abuse in Cambodia
Recruitment Fees and Illegal Lending Practices
Deception and Lack of Information during Recruitment
Recruitment of Girls
Collusion between Agencies and Government Authorities
Migrant Domestic Workers Who Have Lost Contact
Medical Tests without Informed Consent or Counseling
III. Abuses in Cambodia's Training Centers
Deaths in the Training Centers
Forced Confinement and Restrictions on Communication
Poor Living Conditions and Denial of Health Care
Paying the Price of Freedom
IV. Abuses in Malaysia
Unpaid Wages
Physical, Sexual and Psychological Abuse
Restrictions on Freedom of Movement and Poor Working Conditions
Agency-Related Abuses in Malaysia
V. Forced Labor and Practices Akin to Debt Bondage
VI. Barriers to Justice in Malaysia
Cambodian Embassy Response
Legal Protection for Domestic Workers in Malaysia
Response by the Malaysian Authorities
VII. Protection Failures in Cambodia
Regulation of Labor Migration in Cambodia
Implementation of Government Migration Policy
Lack of Effective Government Oversight
Failure to Investigate and Prosecute Abuses
Lack of Support for Returned Migrants
VIII. Cambodia and Malaysia's International Human Rights Obligations
IX. Recommendations
To the Government of Cambodia
To the Parliament
To the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training
To the Ministry of Interior, the Police, and the Ministry of Justice
To the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
To the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, Ministry of Women's Affairs and Ministry of Interior
To the Ministry of Health
To the Association of Cambodian Recruitment Agencies (ACRA)
To the Governments of Cambodia and Malaysia
To the Malaysian Government
To International Donors, including the United Nations, World Bank, United States and Japan
Appendix A: Letter Sent to the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Malaysia
Appendix B: Letter Sent to the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training
Acknowledgments.

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