Migrant workers gather in Seoul for International Migrants Day despite subzero temperatures

Posted on : 2018-12-17 17:03 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Demonstrators call for basic labor protections and rights for migrant workers
Migrant workers and civic demonstrators gather in Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Plaza on Dec. 16 to mark International Migrants Day (Dec. 18) and call for fundamental labor rights for migrant workers. (Kim Myoung-jin
Migrant workers and civic demonstrators gather in Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Plaza on Dec. 16 to mark International Migrants Day (Dec. 18) and call for fundamental labor rights for migrant workers. (Kim Myoung-jin

Despite the subzero temperatures, 60 or so migrant workers came out to Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Plaza on the afternoon of Dec. 16 to mark International Migrants Day. The UN designated Dec. 18 as International Migrants Day after it adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families in 1990.

On Sunday, groups including the Migrants’ Trade Union and Migrants Act launched an event called “Nationwide Joint Action on International Migrants Day” on the stairs leading up to the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul.

“Korean society traps migrant workers in the legal categories of ‘foreign workers’ and ‘illegal aliens’ and refuses to recognize them as members of society. Migrants are humans and workers, just like everyone else. Migrant workers should also be guaranteed legitimate rights as members of society,” demonstrators said.

The migrant workers who gathered on Sunday said they aren’t even guaranteed fundamental rights to taking breaks, changing their place of employment or having safe work conditions.

“We have to work even when we want to take a break, and we can’t change jobs even when we’re making less than 1 million won [US$884.87]. If that’s not forced labor, what is?” said Udaya Rai, president of the Migrants’ Trade Union.

“Worn-out machines break down and cause industrial accidents that injure and disable migrant workers. Some workers even lose their lives.”

Under the current employment permit system for foreigners, migrant workers can’t get a new job without their boss’s permission. That makes it hard for poorly treated migrant workers to change jobs.

“You’d think that laws and institutions would change for the better as time goes by, but the treatment of migrant workers has gotten worse over time. It’s been nearly 30 years since migrant workers came to Korea. The government needs to acknowledge the natural rights of migrant workers,” Rai said.

 staff photographer)
staff photographer)

Inhuman working conditions for migrant workers

The demonstrators also raised the issue of working for long hours for low pay. “I have to start working at 4:30 in the morning, and then after eating a meal at 10 o’clock, I have to keep working until 7 in the evening. It’s frustrating that they don’t calculate my overtime [in my monthly wages] and then, when payday comes around, my boss comes around and scolds me for no reason. Sometimes he even curses at me,” one migrant worker said.

An Egyptian migrant worker who is seeking asylum read a speech he’d written himself: “Asylum seekers have to do dangerous work for long hours, which doesn’t leave any time to study Korean. We’re forced to work in inhumane circumstances for little pay without even receiving health insurance. Though our culinary customs are different from Korea’s, most factories don’t provide food tailored for migrant workers. That means a lot of workers have a nutritional imbalance.”

During this press conference, demonstrators also talked about how undocumented migrant workers had died in a crackdown by the authorities and how migrant workers had been blamed for a fire at an oil storage tank in Goyang.

“In the case of Than Zaw Htay’s death at a construction site in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, this past August, the migrant died while fleeing from Justice Ministry agents who had raided a restaurant, but the Ministry has yet to take responsibility for this,” said Jeong Yeong-seop, executive chair of Migrants Act.

Than Zaw Htay, a 25-year-old migrant worker from Myanmar, was eating lunch at a construction site in Gimpo in August when immigration agents suddenly burst in. While trying to get away, he fell 8m into a basement area and died.

Policy of crackdowns and deportation can’t resolve migrant issue

“The past few decades have demonstrated that the issue of undocumented migrants can’t be resolved through policies focused on crackdowns and deportation. The Moon Jae-in administration ought to be ashamed of advocating human rights while failing to resolve the employment permit system and the policy of crackdowns and deportations,” Jeong said.

“The same can be said of the explosion at the Goyang oil storage facility. Despite expert testimony that the chances of a sky lantern leading to an explosion were about the same as winning the lottery twice, the police have pinned criminal responsibility on a vulnerable migrant worker. They even released the migrant worker’s identity, which violated basic procedure.”

“Young Korean people who take a working holiday to improve their foreign language ability and make some money and those who emigrate from ‘Hell Joseon’ with the dream of a better life abroad are migrant workers, too. Migrant workers deserve protection for their individual rights regardless of their status of sojourn,” members of Migrants Act said as the press conference wrapped up.

By Shin Min-jung, staff reporter

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories