CYIL vol. 10 (2019)

CYIL 10 ȍ2019Ȏ THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF MIGRANT WORKERS IN THE CONTEXT … or compelled to leave their homes. Migrants are individuals who make choices about when to leave and where to go, even though these choices are sometimes extremely constrained. The United Nations Population Division defines irregular migrants as individuals who enter a country often in search of employment without the required documents or permits, or who overstay the authorized length of stay in the country. 14 The interpretations above indicate that labour migrants are considered to be those individuals seeking work or employed in the host/foreign country, or, previously seeking work or employed, but unable to continue working and remaining in residence in the host country irrespective of their legal status. In determining the definition of labour migrants, some use legal status or motivation, and others general employment. 15 Vulnerability of Migrant Workers Many migrants are well-protected, particularly the highly skilled migrant workers, who are usually accorded the full and effective enjoyment of the totality of their human rights in the foreign country and throughout the migratory process. At the other end of the spectrum are poor and unskilled migrants, who are increasingly composed of women. For them, the intersection of human rights and international migration is a negative one, which occurs at a number of points during their journey: in countries of origin, transit and destination. 16 The movement that places people in dangerous situations represents a serious human rights concern. 17 A recent United Nations inter-agency initiative spearheaded by Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) noted that “where migrants fall outside the specific legal category of “refugee”, it may be particularly important to ensure that their human rights are respected, protected and fulfilled. Some migrants will need specific protection because of the situations they left behind, the circumstances in which they travel or the conditions they face on arrival, or because of personal characteristics such as their age, gender identity, disability or health status. 18 This vulnerability is not the consequence of a personal deficiency on the part of the migrant, and that being “vulnerable” does not divest a person of agency or even resilience. 19 The vulnerability arises in specific circumstances, when migrants are unable to effectively enjoy their human rights, due to situations imposed on them by means of law, policy and practice. The particular vulnerability of migrant workers stems from the fact that they are not citizens of the country in which they live, they have crossed an international border and – unlike citizens – they may enter and live in another country only with the express consent 14 ZIMMERMAN, C., KISS, L., HOSSAIN, M., Migration and health: A Framework for 21 st Century Policy- Making, May 2011, PLoS Medicine 8(5):e1001034. 15 AMIRKHANIAN, Y., KUZNETSOVA, A., KELLY, J., DIFRANCEISCO, W., MUSATOV, V., AVSUKE- VICH, N., et al, Male Labor Migrants in Russia: HIV Risk Behavior Levels, Contextual Factors, and Prevention Needs, J Immigr Minor Health, October 2011, 13(5), pp. 919-928. 16 GRANT, S., International Migration and Human Rights , GCIM, September 2005, p. 3. 17 United Nations Human Rights Council, Situation of Migrants in Transit – Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights , 27 January 2016, A/HRC/31/35. Available at: https://www. refworld.org/docid/56ead46d4.html. 18 OHCHR and Global Migration Group, p. 1. 19 OBEROI, P., Words Matter. But Rights Matter More, Anti-Trafficking Review, Issue 11, 2018 , pp. 129-132. Available at: www.antitraffickingreview.org.

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