More Displacement, More Abuses in Latest Burma Army Attacks

The Burma Army is stepping up on its promise to “eliminate” the Arakan Army (AA) with an increase in the number and ferocity of military attacks in northern Arakan State […]

Myanmar: Investigate Forced Labor of Rakhine Buddhists in Western Myanmar

(Yangon, March 15, 2016)— Myanmar Army soldiers forced ethnic-Rakhine civilians to dig graves and carry supplies under the threat of death during recent fighting with the Arakan Army in Rakhine State, Fortify Rights said today […]

Trafficking in Persons Report 2014

BURMA

Burma is a source country for men, women, and children subjected to forced labor, and for women and children subjected to sex trafficking in other countries. Burmese men, women, and children who migrate for work abroad, particularly to Thailand and China, are subjected to conditions of forced labor or sex trafficking in these countries. Poor economic conditions within Burma continue to drive large numbers of Burmese men, women, and children to migrate through both legal and illegal channels for work primarily in East Asia, as well as destinations including the Middle East, South Asia, and the United States. Men are most often subjected to forced labor, often in the fishing, manufacturing, and construction industries abroad. Women and girls are primarily subjected to sex trafficking or domestic servitude. The large numbers of migrants seeking work in Thailand’s fishing and domestic work sectors do so outside formal channels. Some Burmese men in the Thai fishing industry are subjected to debt bondage, passport confiscation, or false employment offers; some are also subjected to physical abuse and are forced to remain aboard vessels in international waters for years […]

EU Moving To Reward Promises Rather Than Results

The ITUC is deeply concerned by the 15 June joint statement by EU High Representative Catherine Ashton and EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht calling for the rapid reinstatement of the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) for Myanmar […]

An ILO Commission of Inquiry on Freedom of Association in Burma (Myanmar) – The time is now!

Freedom of association has long been denied in law and practice in Burma (Myanmar), despite several years of strong criticism by the ILO supervisory bodies. The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and its affiliate, the Federation of Trade Unions – Burma (FTUB), call upon the Governing Body of […]

Migrant Domestic Workers Celebrate News of the ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers

Burmese domestic workers are celebrating in Chiang Mai on hearing that today, June 16th 2011, the International Labour Organization has adopted Convention 189: Decent Work for Domestic Workers at the 100th Session of the ILO Conference. Said Hseng Moon, a domestic worker who has been working in Thailand for nearly ten years, “Well, I know that I’ve been working for many years, but now everybody knows that it was work! And hopefully that means we, domestic workers, will get some respect now” […]

Thai Labour Leader Petitions ILO in Geneva: “Systematic Abuse of Myanmar Migrant Workers in Thailand Breaches International Law”

Today (13th June) at 9am (GMT +1), Mr. Sawit Keawwan, General Secretary of Thailand’s State Enterprise Workers Relations Confederation (SERC), petitioned the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in Geneva, Switzerland. In a letter submitted to the ILO’s Committee of Experts, SERC stated Thailand is systematically violating international law by failing to protect rights of migrant workers from Myanmar […]

CHRO welcomes ILO’s visit to Chin State

The Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO) today welcomes the visit this week by the International Labor Organization (ILO) to Chin State to raise awareness about the issue of forced labor with the local authorities. In a State where more than 90 percent […]

Rights Groups to Take Case of Myanmar Migrant Work Accident Victim Chained to Hospital Bed to Labour Ministry Demanding Urgent Systems Review

Mr. Charlie Tiyu, a migrant worker from Myanmar who was illegally chained to his bed whilst receiving treatment for a work-related injury last week, is being supported by Thai rights groups tomorrow (7th Feb 2011) to demand compensation from the Social Security Office’s (SSO) Workmen’s Compensation Fund (WCF). After a campaign by the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF), the Immigration Bureau ordered Charlie unchained on 4th Feb 2011 but he remains under custody in the Police General Hospital in Bangkok […]

ILO: Thailand’s Discrimination Against Migrant Workers Breaches International Law

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has strongly criticised the Royal Thai Government (RTG) for its treatment of migrant workers. Just a week after the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants publicly issued a statement of concern on RTG’s migrant worker policies, Thailand’s human rights reputation falls into question as it vies […]