Workshop on “Dealing with Authorities”
PMM Training on “Responding & Organising” in I.C Church Penang
Conception Penang attended a training facilitated by the Diocesan
Migrant Ministry (DMM) of the Penang Office for Human Development
(POHD). The training was entitled “Responding & Organising”. The purpose of the training was to help the PMM participants learn the methods of responding to migrant and organising a ministry in the parish.
The training which lasted 3 hours started off with a small group activity,
where participants were asked to respond to hypothetical situation
involving migrants in distress. Participants were required to think out of
the box and present the different ways they would have responded if the
situation took place in their parish. It was a great start as participants
considered the various consequences and constraints a PMM regularly
comes under when dealing with migrants in distress.
Next Sr. Marie Angel, a nun whom works very closely with the migrant
workers in Penang, shared her personal experience of how she was called
by God in to this ministry. She also explained the challenges and fears
she faced, while assisting the migrants. She related her recent
experience involving three Myanmar workers who were cheated of
their wages and were living in horrible conditions. Sr. Mary sought
the assistance of the POHD to file a labour department complaint.
When this was done, the employer threatened the workers and attempted
deport the workers before the case came up for hearing. With the timely
intervention of POHD who secured the services of a pro-bono lawyer
(a Catholic), the deportation was averted. After much negotiations and
meetings, the employer finally was forced to pay the worker’s outstanding
wages amounting to RM10,000 plus free air tickets. She related how the
Lord was present with the workers throughout the ordeal and that she
grew richer spiritually from the experience. Sr. Marie concluded her
testimony with a lovely song called “The Galillee”. After her testimony,
the main facilitator, Joachim Xavier, taught the PMM members how to
effectively establish migrant worker contacts. They were given tips on
the techniques of approaching migrant workers and how maintain a close
rapport with them. Thereafter the members were presented with numerous
ideas of projects and events which the PMM could organise for migrant
workers.
and “Phone Home Day” were explained in detail. The session ended
with Joachim sharing on the ways to promote the PMM in the parish.
Posters, flyers, banners, emails and newsletter were some of the ways
of drawing parishioners and migrant workers into PMM activities.
Participants of the workshop were very happy to be part in this training
and were all set for their coming outing program with the Migrant workers.
PS: The Penang Office for Human Development hopes to run more of
such trainings in the Penang Diocese to help parishes widen their
knowledge on the Migrant issues and help them provide services to
the Migrant Workers. If you would like for such a training to be held
in your parish, Kindly Contact the Migrant Ministry Officer,
Mr Stanley at
2008 DIOCESAN MIGRANT SUNDAY CELEBRATION @ NBVM CHURCH
Church of the Nativity of the BVM on 28 Sept. It was organized by
the Diocesan Migrant Ministry (DMM) of POHD with the help of the
local parish Foreign Workers Service Centre volunteers and migrant
community coordinators.
Fr. Nelson Chitty. The church was full with about approximately
300 parishioners and 200 migrant workers. The migrants came from
PhilippineS, Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, India, Sri Lanka and Nigeria.
misfortune was the focus of Fr. Nelson’s homily. He said that for
example we like to blame the other party when we got into an
accident, we blame the teachers when our children can’t study
and we even put the blame on our ancestors for some misfortune
that befall us.
what we should do or should not do. Everything happen because
of your choice, so do not blame other people or situation.”
their colorful costumes, lead the procession, with a graceful dance.
The Vietnamese, Nigerians,, Filipino offered up gifts representing their
cultures.
for a fun time of activities.
by welcoming the people. He also thanked the Bishop for his support to
their ministry. Ruth, from the Diocese Migrant Ministry also gave a short
address. She said that the Church always welcome migrant workers.
She also asked for forgiveness from the migrants if there had been any
short-comings on their side.
people on why the Diocese celebrates Migrant Sunday every year.
First, he said, this is to show that the Church welcome migrants and
make them feel at home. Secondly, is to show appreciation for the
migrant’s immense contribution to the country growth especially
economic growth.
Migrant Coordinators and representatives of all the various communities
were called to cut a cake, and also a traditional rice in the shape of a
pyramid, from Indonesia, known as ‘nasi tepping’.
traditional cultural dance that depicts the harvest festival. The Nigerians
sang a few short chanting hymns, in which they get everyone to join in.
Children from the parish catechism classes also presented some action songs.
went up to share about his experience getting of being cheated by his
employer and how after long drawn legal battle, recently received his just
wages which accumulated to a substantial amount. He related how the
DMM stood by him and his friends during their most trying times especially
when they were without work and food.
migrant workers were so sporting to join in. There were plenty to eat
during lunch. All the food were prepared by the migrant workers themselves.
Therefore, it was like an ‘international buffet’ with food from Indonesia,
India, Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar.
the various communities, and also to all the migrant community coordinators.
from Nepal (picture left), remarked that when people from the different
countries come together, they can learn from each other their experiences
and cultures. This will help to strengthen their ties with each other.
get to know the migrant workers who comes to our church. I appreciate
the effort of the organizer in bringing the migrant workers together.”
MOBILE CLINIC FOR REFUGEES TAKES OFF IN ST. ANNE'S, BUKIT MERTAJAM
The Parish Human Development Committee of Church of St Anne is set to launch
the Mobile Clinic catering for refugees in the Bukit Mertajam area. The Diocesan
Migrant Ministry (DMM) of the Penang Office for Human Development (POHD) assisted
the St. Anne' s PHDC by organizing training sessions and sourcing for the funds to run
the carry out the project.
On 16 Sept., the Penang Office for Human Development (POHD) invited staff from
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to give the PHDC a talk
about refugees especially in the area of providing health services to refugees. This
was the 2nd training organized organized by POHD to equip the PHDC members with
information that they would require when they eventually start the project. The training
was held at the Church of St Anne with eight PHDC members attending.
The staff from UNHCR were Anne Verghese (Senior Protection Assistant), Amarjiet Singh
(Protection Assistant) and Dr. Susheela Balavandaram (Health Officer).
Anne started off by talking about the role of UNHCR and also explained the definition
refugees and why they need international protection. She explored the strategy, legal
framework, emerging administrative protective framework and the protection and
humanitarian space challenges. Anne touched on Section 55E of the Immigration Act
which covers offences and punishments and section 56(1)(d) which touches on the
harbouring of undocumented immigrants.
Anne also informed the participants about the activities of UNHCR like registration exercise,
providing health services and education. UNHCR also provides outreach and protection
intervention e.g. interventions in detention and police-lock up. Other outreach activities
UNHCR takes up are ensuring legal representation, securing releases and advocacy. The
most crucial of all is the manning of their hotlines for refugees, which is available 24 hours.
The hotline number is
Amarjiet explained in brief the procedures to register a refugee. First of all, the person is
interviewed to find out his status. Then the person is provided with all the documents that
needs to be completed. The application will be processed between 2 to 9 weeks, depending
on how complicated the case is. He then said that it will take about 6 to 9 weeks for everything
to be finalised, after which the applicant is informed of his approved refugee status.
Refugee access to healthcare services is frequently limited due to various factors like cost,
language barriers and difficulties accessing hospitals and clinics, said Dr. Susheela. Thus,
UNHCR, in partnership with others NGOs (eg. ACTS, Buddhist Tzu Chi, Mercy Malaysia and
now PHDCs) have started Mobile Clinics around the country so that refugees have better
access to medical services.
Dr. Susheela then proceeded to explain a little on how Mobile Clinics operates. Since PHDC
St Anne is going to start a Mobile Clinic, it is good for them to learn some tips on how to run it.
The service is much needed and it is great that the church is responding to refugees.
At the talk, Sudhagaran Stanley, the Migrant Ministry Officer of the DMM presented a cheque
for RM5,000 to Dr. Mary Fenandez, President of the St. Anne's PHDC for the purpose of financing
the Mobile Clinic Project. In June 2008, The PHDC had written a project proposal to the Penang
Diocesan Lenten Campaign requesting for funding for the project. The funding application was
approved by the Board of Management. The Penang Diocesan Lenten Campaign regularly finances
humanitarian projects around the diocese and particular attention is given to projects that are
mooted by PHDCs.
The members of PHDC St Anne appreciate the sharing of Anne, Amarjiet and Dr Susheela from
UNHCR as they had learned a lot about refugee's situation and how to care for them, especially
concerning health care. They also thanked the Diocesan Migrant Ministry of POHD for assisting
them in securing the resources needed to begin this project in the parish.
-By Lucia Lai
TRAINING ON PARISH MIGRANT MINISTRY, TELUK INTAN PHDC
The Penang Office for Human Development (POHD) recently conducted a half-day training
session in the Church of St. Anthony Teluk Intan on how to start a Parish Migrant Ministry
(PMM). This training was in response to a request by the PHDC for assistance to begin a
PMM in the parish. The training which was held on the 21st of September 2008 saw a total
of 30 participants who were from the Parish Human Development Committee, Parish Youth
Group, and even a few migrant workers.
The training was facilitated by Joachim Xavier, Officer in-charge of the Diocesan Migrant Ministry
(DMM) of the Penang Diocese and Sudhagaran Stanley, the latest recruit in POHD responsible for
developing PMMs throughout the Diocese of Penang. The training started with the participants
sharing their experiences on a migrant worker. Shortly after the sharing, a ½ hour video
presentation entitled 'Breaking Labour' was presented. Issues such as unpaid wages, difficult
living conditions, documentations, health, physical and mental abuses at work and violation of
Human rights were discussed in the training. During the training, Joachim explained why there
was a need for the PMM. He said the Gospel and the Social Teachings of the Catholic Church,
clearly exhorts Catholics to recognise and welcome the existence of foreigners in our churches.
He explained that foreign workers are frequently isolated from the community and that we are
all called by God to be a witness to God`s unconditional love. He also shared the objective of a
PMM which is to create a “Home Away from Home” the official tagline of the DMM. He continued
by showing them the steps to begin a parish migrant ministry. Joachim also shared the types of
program that a PMM could do such as the 'Movie day', 'Mobile Clinic Service' or 'Phone Home Day'.
He also stated that the DMM would be very happy to support the PMM in whatever possible ways
such as providing information, trainings, materials and case work studies. The participants were
all set and ready to start their Parish Migrant Ministry after the training. The DMM hopes to conduct
more of this awareness and training sessions in parishes throughout the Penang Diocese.
Interested parishes can contact the PMM Officer of the Penang Diocese, Stanley at 04- 227 4851
or 016- 445 5678.
By Lucia Lai
MIGRANTS CASE HANDLING WORKSHOP IN
It is without doubt that there are many caring volunteers out there who
are ever willing to help migrant workers in our country. However, many
are not aware how to go about it, especially in migrant case-handling
which involves legal issues.
The Penang Office for Human Development (POHD), with the collaboration
JUMP (Jaringan Utara Migrasi dan Pelarian) organised a 'Migrant Case-
Workshop" in August. The event which was held at Catholic Diocesan,
attracted 21 participants from various churches, NGOs and interested
who work with migrants.
Joachim Xavier, the organizing chairperson and the POHD officer in charge
Diocesan Migrant Ministry, kicked off the workshop by giving a brief
background of JUMP. He explained why the workshop was necessary
and timely. He said that to effectively help a migrant worker who is in
trouble, some para-legal knowledge is required. Participants must also
know the role of the various government departments and how to work
with them.
The first speaker was George Aeria, an HR Management Consultant, who
talked about the Employment Act 1955 and some of it more important
features. Basic information like the objectives, definitions and scope of
coverage of the Act were explored, before he moved on to the Rights of
the Foreign Workers as provided by the law. It was interesting to note
that the Employment Act 1955 provides migrant workers (other than
Domestic Workers) the same type of protection as local workers. Though
the Employment Act may sound like a dry topic, George, with his dynamic
humorous style, captivated the participants with his presentation.
One of the topics that attracted the most interest and responses from the
participants was on unpaid wages and working hours. Using a simplified
chart, George shared in detail how to calculate wages due to migrant
workers for normal days work, overtime work, rest day work and public
holiday work.
The next speaker was Eric Cheah, a lawyer, who volunteered his service
working for Vietnamese migrant workers. He talked about the "Prohibitions
and Obligations of the Immigration Act 1959". He provided information on
the Work Permit, Levy,
Possession of passports by Employers or Agents. He pointed out that
frequently the Immigration Act 1959 prohibits a worker from continuing
his stay in the country after termination even if he has a pending court
hearing. Sometimes workers are given a 'Special Pass' (by the Immigration
Department) allowing them to stay for 1 month but they are charged
RM100.00 per month for the document and it is limited to only 3 months.
A case can take anything from 3 months to several years to be settled and
workers are not allowed to work during this time. This creates an unbearable
situation for migrant workers who eventually just give up and go home empty
handed.
The third speaker, Joachim Xavier, then talked about the how to handle
complaints from migrant workers.
“What do you do when you received a complaint from a migrant worker?”
he asked. “The first thing you will do is of course to interview the worker.
Then you vet the complaints and determine what the issues are.”
Then, he said, one must try to negotiate with the disputing party
(i.e. employer). When negotiations fails, then refer the complaints to the
various authorities like the Labour Department, the Police, the Immigration
Department.
He stressed that it is important to record down everything. He took pains
to explain in detail the procedures in the various government department
i.e. Jabatan Tenaga Kerja. He also handed out a file which contained
various sample documents which are normally used while handling a case.
He stressed that one does not have to be a lawyer to do para-legal work.
Nevertheless, it's not meant for the faint-hearted as well. Handling cases
would most certainly put volunteers in touch with unreasonable employers,
scheming agents and corrupt government officials. One has to learn how to
think on the feet and manage the various obstacles creatively.
The participants received a lot of useful informative documents as a guide
for them in migrant case handling. Hopefully, this training would help to
increase the number of people who are able to handle migrant cases.
POHD has offered this training programme to any parish in the Diocese
which wants to learn how to handle migrant cases.
by Lucia Lai
INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION FOR MIGRANTS
As
migrant workers from other countries are not forgotten when the
Penang Office for Human Development organized an Independence
Day Celebration for them in
About 200 people turned up for the celebration on 10 August, which
began with an Eucharistic Celebration. There were Indonesians, Filipinos,
Vietnamese, Indians, Pakistanis, Sri Lankan and Malaysian representatives
from Sabah & Sarawak.
The Eucharistic Celebration was in English and Bahasa and celebrated by
Fr. Mark Michael at the Church of the Immaculate Conception,
“We must always put our trust in God specially in time of difficulty.”
said Fr. Mark in his homily. “Remain faithful to God, even in time of
our weaknesses. This is because our God is a forgiving God and he is
always there to help us.”
Fr. Mark also mentioned that migrant workers in
sure that they know their rights. This is important for them so as to
uphold justice. He also said that if migrant workers felt that they had
been abused by their employers, they should not be afraid to report to
a church member of the priest, as the Church will try to help them solve
their problems.
During the offertory of gifts, flowers, fruits and a stalk of paddy were
offered up to symbolise the unity of different ethnics as one body of
Christ.
After Mass, there was lunch and concert performance. The Indonesians
kicked off the concert with a welcoming dance. They later sang a song.
Filipinos, Indians and Vietnamese also joined in with presentation of songs
in their own languages. Sabahan and Sarawakians present a ‘fashion show’
with their costumes of the different ethnic groups. They also sang a
Sabahan native song.
by Lucia Lai
REFUGEE AID TRAINING FOR PHDC MEMBERS
are found to settle in and around the Bukit Mertajam area. As such,
the Parish Human Development Committee (PHDC) of the Church of
St Anne in Bukit Mertajam, had toyed with the idea of extending help
That’s when the Penang Office for Human Development (POHD) stepped in.
POHD offered to organize a ‘Refugee Aid Training’ for the members of PHDC.
to healthcare. The PHDC members of St Anne’s church are in the process
of setting up a mobile clinic service that would dispense healthcare at the
refugee location. With this in mind, POHD had also invited Mr. Anthony
Matthew, from Kumpulan A.C.T.S (A-Call-To-Serve) to share their experience
in conducting mobile clinic services in Kuala Lumpur.
are undocumented. Refugees who are undocumented and not registered
with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) face
Penang by the UNHCR with the help of the Penang Office for
Human Development (POHD).
services for the benefit of these refugees. POHD is regularly in touch
with UNHCR and other NGOs to ensure that services are effectively
organized for the community.
and they were from the ethnic groups of Mon, Karenni, Karen, Shan and
Arakanese.
staffs spoke the Mynamar language, thus they acted as interpreters.
WORLD REFUGEES DAY CELEBRATION ORGANISED BY JUMP
These people, children and adults, 135 of them, were Burmese refugees
from different ethnic groups. They were gathered at the Sts Chastan &
Imbert Chapel, Prai on 22 June to celebrate World Refugees Day.
committee (Jaringan Utara Migrasi & Pelarian – Northern Network of
Migrants & Refugees), of which the Penang Office for Human
Development (POHD) is part of the committee.
and Women’s Centre for Change (WCC) and individuals who are interested
to participate in migration efforts.
The JUMP committee members were glad to be able to contribute their
time and effort to get together the refugees. Being strangers in this land,
they hardly have time to socialize and enjoyed themselves, thus giving
them this opportunity to enjoy themselves on occasion of World Refugees
Day is enough satisfaction for the organizers.
by Lucia Lai
