Pressure govt. on the migrant worker convention

The United Nations International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families is a mouthful. It's also an important document aimed at enshrining migrant workers' rights. Among other things, the convention bans the confiscation of migrant workers' identity documents and guarantees access to public education and health services. The entire text is available at http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/cmw.htm but it's not exactly light reading, unless you're the kind of person who enjoys a nice frothy legal text before bedtime.


As only 39 countries have ratified the convention, it's likely that you live in a country where it hasn't been approved. In general it's been ratified only by largely migrant-sending countries rather than by largely migrant-receiving countries, given the political difficulties of endorsing migrants' rights in much of the world. These difficulties have only intensified in the wake of the global economic crisis, as xenophobia always becomes more popular at such times. While the convention appears to have been mostly forgotten or neglected by the most powerful countries in the world, that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile to add your tiny voice to the others calling for it to be recognised. To do so, all you have to do is contact a politician in your country - preferably one working on migration or UN matters - and ask for the convention to be further considered.


Effort involved: a bit of research to find out the relevant politician you should be addressing. This may allow you to enjoy those migrant-picked strawberries a little more.


Image from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2010/dec/22/migrant-workers-remittances