CNI News
22 Oct 2022
As armed clashes erupt along Myawaddy-Kawkareik Asia Highway frequently, sending Myanmar workers via the highway should be suspended until November, labour activists for Myanmar migrant workers told the CNI.
Labour activist Ko Thar Gyi told the CNI, “Some agencies told us that the workers they sent via the highway had bought life insurance policies. What can families of workers do with the insurance compensations between MMK 3 million and 5 million. They should not risk the lives of the workers when the danger is imminent. Although the workers are sent through the MOU with Thailand, they are not eligible for work permits, social security benefits and insurance compensations if they encounter dangers on the way to Thailand. So, migrant workers should not rush to come to Thailand amid fighting while employers should give them more time for them until the situation has changed.”
The Myanmar Overseas Employment Agencies Federation has also urged agencies to send Myanmar workers to Thailand via the highway only after the situation on the ground has been thoroughly studied and workers sent by some agencies were stranded in Hpa-am and Kyondoe.
Director Daw Myat Haymar Lin of the Pwint Phue Aung Agency told the CNI, “We sent workers to Myawady on 18th October but the highway was blocked and the workers were forced to come back from Kawkareik to Hpa-an and are staying at a monastery.
She added, “We treated from Kawkareik at 1 pm yesterday (20th October) and arrived in Hpa-am at 3 pm. Explosions of heavy weapon rounds become louder and louder near the restaurant where we were taking shelter. Local people told us that the situation was getting worse and worse. Gunfire was reported in the backyard of the restaurant. So, we retreated because we brought a lot of workers with us. All agencies retreated with their workers. We are required to do it in accordance with the instruction of the labour department, but we still haven’t received any instruction from it. So, we are staying at the monastery with the permission of the abbot and waiting. We will have to watch the situation closely for about a week.”
She urged agencies that have planned to send workers at the moment should not do so because they will incur more food and accommodation costs on the way.
She said, “Agencies should risk the danger. Nothing is more important than lives. If they are stranded, they will get into trouble. They will incur higher costs for food and accommodation. The prices for a meal of rice have risen from MMK 3,000 to 6,000. The price of a bottle of drinking water has increased from MMK 500 to 800. As the workers have already received smart cards, agencies can send them when the situation has improved.”
Armed clashes erupted between the military and the KNLA joint forces in Khanamemu Ward in western Kawkareik in the morning of 21 October, according to the Karen news agency KIC.
The Myawaddy-Kawkareik Asia Highway is the major route for sending workers and trade between Thailand and Myanmar. Explosions rocked the neighbourhood near No (1) Friendship Bridge on 18th October and the highway has been blocked for security reasons at the moment.
