Search

In Hong Kong there are currently about 380 thousand migrant domestic workers (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Immigration Department, 2018) and in Singapore there are currently about 260 thousand (Singapore Ministry of Manpower, 2018). They often suffer abuse. Many experts believe that the live-in rule, which in both cities requires them to live in their employer’s home, is one of the factors that contribute to the abuse of these workers. Through interviews with key advocates of migrant domestic workers and comparing Hong Kong and Singapore, this thesis explores the different interests that various actors attach to advocacy for domestic worker rights, using the live-in rule as a focal point. In Hong Kong, where migrant workers can organize and bring their own voices to advocacy, migrant domestic workers are vigorously acting to challenge structural oppression and discrimination. There are also abundant local civil society actors that support and act in solidarity with migrant domestic workers. However, in Singapore, where migrant workers cannot join public protests, migrant domestic workers are absent from campaigns that aim to benefit these workers. The findings indicate that in Hong Kong, the live-in rule is understood as a regulation that fosters discrimination and strengthens systematic oppression against migrant domestic workers. On the contrary, in Singapore, migrant domestic workers cannot join public protest, and therefore, the live-in rule is understood primarily as an issue of space and cost and does not get much attention from the key actors.

The aim of this thesis is to understand how the political mobilisation of migrant domestic workers (MDWs) employed in Lebanon started and continued. It also tries to comprehend how some of them could found a politically active collective of MDWs, the Alliance of Domestic Workers in Lebanon (Alliance), by analysing what factors enabled and restrained the open political activism of MDWs from their first steps as activists until now. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with two founding members and seven international and Lebanese organisations, the MDWs´ political mobilisation is chronologically recaptured. Extending Lahusen´s definition of political mobilisation, the thesis critically reflects on Johnston´s concept for protest to evolve in repressive states. The analysis shows that the women activists are left in a lawless position and refer to the free spaces of Lebanese and international non-profit organisations, where their activism begins. These organisations help the women to build up their protest capital, enabling them to start their own group, the Alliance. Within their own group they organise themselves not only against the injustice they experience as MDWs but also emancipate themselves from their dependency on the NGOs. The findings approve that though international and Lebanese organisations have played a crucial part in successfully mobilising the women, the MDWs´ experience of lack of influence inside these free spaces, shapes the group´s actions, collective identity and course. Their political mobilisation can be seen as a long-term, organic process, in which knowledge, collective identity, collective action and experience are tightly interwoven and are the motor behind the members´ activism.

As one of the primary countries of destination for migrant domestic workers in Asia, Singapore is a developed country with one of the highest standards of living in the region. Yet, the city-state has been on the receiving end of extensive criticism concerning the rights and protections of migrant domestic workers. Civil society organizations have been one of the loudest critics, and in recent public demands for change, two organizations have put forward new and controversial claims. This study centers on the two reports produced by HOME & Liberty Shared and RAB, which frame migrant domestic workers as victims of forced labor. The objectives of this study are to assess these claims by identifying and critically discussing the general problem representations inherent in the reports and by analyzing the manner in which these organizations engage in framing processes. Additionally, the study aims to examine the inevitable tensions produced between the civil society organizations and the Singapore government. Through inspiration from a ‘what’s the problem represented to be’ framework as well as frame analysis, the reports are analyzed using the theoretical concepts of isomorphism, a continuum approach and strategic essentialism. The findings suggest that the organizations differ in their problem representations, that there are fundamental tensions between the worldviews of the organizations and those of the state and that the intentional framing strategies utilized by the organizations do not adequately take into account the complexity of the subject of forced labor, which the Singapore state exploits when dismissing their claims.

In Hong Kong there are currently about 380 thousand migrant domestic workers (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Immigration Department, 2018) and in Singapore there are currently about 260 thousand (Singapore Ministry of Manpower, 2018). They often suffer abuse. Many experts believe that the live-in rule, which in both cities requires them to live in their employer’s home, is one of the factors that contribute to the abuse of these workers. Through interviews with key advocates of migrant domestic workers and comparing Hong Kong and Singapore, this thesis explores the different interests that various actors attach to advocacy for domestic worker rights, using the live-in rule as a focal point. In Hong Kong, where migrant workers can organize and bring their own voices to advocacy, migrant domestic workers are vigorously acting to challenge structural oppression and discrimination. There are also abundant local civil society actors that support and act in solidarity with migrant domestic workers. However, in Singapore, where migrant workers cannot join public protests, migrant domestic workers are absent from campaigns that aim to benefit these workers. The findings indicate that in Hong Kong, the live-in rule is understood as a regulation that fosters discrimination and strengthens systematic oppression against migrant domestic workers. On the contrary, in Singapore, migrant domestic workers cannot join public protest, and therefore, the live-in rule is understood primarily as an issue of space and cost and does not get much attention from the key actors.

As one of the primary countries of destination for migrant domestic workers in Asia, Singapore is a developed country with one of the highest standards of living in the region. Yet, the city-state has been on the receiving end of extensive criticism concerning the rights and protections of migrant domestic workers. Civil society organizations have been one of the loudest critics, and in recent public demands for change, two organizations have put forward new and controversial claims. This study centers on the two reports produced by HOME & Liberty Shared and RAB, which frame migrant domestic workers as victims of forced labor. The objectives of this study are to assess these claims by identifying and critically discussing the general problem representations inherent in the reports and by analyzing the manner in which these organizations engage in framing processes. Additionally, the study aims to examine the inevitable tensions produced between the civil society organizations and the Singapore government. Through inspiration from a ‘what’s the problem represented to be’ framework as well as frame analysis, the reports are analyzed using the theoretical concepts of isomorphism, a continuum approach and strategic essentialism. The findings suggest that the organizations differ in their problem representations, that there are fundamental tensions between the worldviews of the organizations and those of the state and that the intentional framing strategies utilized by the organizations do not adequately take into account the complexity of the subject of forced labor, which the Singapore state exploits when dismissing their claims.

The aim of this thesis is to understand how the political mobilisation of migrant domestic workers (MDWs) employed in Lebanon started and continued. It also tries to comprehend how some of them could found a politically active collective of MDWs, the Alliance of Domestic Workers in Lebanon (Alliance), by analysing what factors enabled and restrained the open political activism of MDWs from their first steps as activists until now. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with two founding members and seven international and Lebanese organisations, the MDWs´ political mobilisation is chronologically recaptured. Extending Lahusen´s definition of political mobilisation, the thesis critically reflects on Johnston´s concept for protest to evolve in repressive states. The analysis shows that the women activists are left in a lawless position and refer to the free spaces of Lebanese and international non-profit organisations, where their activism begins. These organisations help the women to build up their protest capital, enabling them to start their own group, the Alliance. Within their own group they organise themselves not only against the injustice they experience as MDWs but also emancipate themselves from their dependency on the NGOs. The findings approve that though international and Lebanese organisations have played a crucial part in successfully mobilising the women, the MDWs´ experience of lack of influence inside these free spaces, shapes the group´s actions, collective identity and course. Their political mobilisation can be seen as a long-term, organic process, in which knowledge, collective identity, collective action and experience are tightly interwoven and are the motor behind the members´ activism.

This study aims to develop a model of migrant domestic workers’ empowerment processes in online communities. Adopting a virtual ethnographic approach, this research gathered data from online observations and interview. Data was analysed using qualitative content analyses. The findings show that migrant domestic workers’ empowerment in online communities takes the form of online practices and their related outcomes which enhance the capabilities of migrant domestic workers to reach common welfare agenda. The model is unique in term of demonstrating a clear relationship between online practices and their related outcomes at individual and community level.

Allmark, P., & Wahyudi, I. (2019). Travel, sexuality and female Indonesian domestic migrant workers in Hong Kong. Continuum, 33(5), 630-642. Available here

This qualitative research explores the discursive construction of the notion of temporary foreign workers, examines in what sense migrant domestic workers can be understood as postcolonial subjects, and analyzes the nature of Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) in the context of the ongoing domestic and global debate on labour migration and citizenship. The research focuses on a sub-program of the TFWP that allows eligible migrant workers to eventually apply for permanent resident status, the Caregiver Program. Using texts from major news media in Canada, federal government organizations, academics, and advocacy groups for migrant workers as raw material for analysis, the research examines various perspectives on the TFWP and the temporary status of migrant workers in Canada through the lens of postcolonial theory. Specifically, the research attempts to identify where the discourse intersects and explores in what ways key stakeholders discuss, support, or condemn the temporary status of migrant workers.

Cet article explore le développement du mouvement social des travailleuses domestiques migrantes au Liban ainsi que ses stratégies pour lutter contre leur exclusion d’une part, et celles des acteurs étatiques pour renforcer cette exclusion d’autre part. S’inspirant des travaux de Judith Butler sur la performance dans l’assemblée politique, ce texte avance l’importance de considérer la place du corps, et en particulier le corps au sein d’un mouvement intersectionnel, pour comprendre la signification politique de l’assemblée dans le cas des travailleuses domestiques migrantes, ainsi que les façons dont l’État tente de supprimer cette assemblée en ciblant le corps dans des actes tels que l’emprisonnement, la déportation et l’appel à la peur., This paper explores the development of the migrant domestic workers’ intersectional social movement in Lebanon as well as its strategies in addressing migrant domestic workers’ exclusion on the one hand, and the strategies of state actors to reinforce this exclusion on the other hand. Drawing from Judith Butler’s work on performance in political assembly, this text advances the importance of considering the place of the body, and in particular the body amid an intersectional movement, to understand the political significance of assembly in the case of migrant domestic workers, as well as the ways in which state attempts to dismantle this assembly by targeting the body in acts such as imprisonment, deportation and fear-mongering.

Cet article explore le développement du mouvement social des travailleuses domestiques migrantes au Liban ainsi que ses stratégies pour lutter contre leur exclusion d’une part, et celles des acteurs étatiques pour renforcer cette exclusion d’autre part. S’inspirant des travaux de Judith Butler sur la performance dans l’assemblée politique, ce texte avance l’importance de considérer la place du corps, et en particulier le corps au sein d’un mouvement intersectionnel, pour comprendre la signification politique de l’assemblée dans le cas des travailleuses domestiques migrantes, ainsi que les façons dont l’État tente de supprimer cette assemblée en ciblant le corps dans des actes tels que l’emprisonnement, la déportation et l’appel à la peur., This paper explores the development of the migrant domestic workers’ intersectional social movement in Lebanon as well as its strategies in addressing migrant domestic workers’ exclusion on the one hand, and the strategies of state actors to reinforce this exclusion on the other hand. Drawing from Judith Butler’s work on performance in political assembly, this text advances the importance of considering the place of the body, and in particular the body amid an intersectional movement, to understand the political significance of assembly in the case of migrant domestic workers, as well as the ways in which state attempts to dismantle this assembly by targeting the body in acts such as imprisonment, deportation and fear-mongering.