Learn from our long addiction to migrant labour

 

From hostels to brothels, the debate on foreign workers and how to treat them right rages on.

Allegations of mistreatment of migrant workers and deplorable work and living conditions have been making the rounds for a long time.

So have claims of bad behaviour among these workers.

Given our rising dependence on migrant labour, this problem is bound to persist. Yet, little has been done to deal with it.

Importing labour is not a new practice in Malaysia.

We have been doing so since the 19th century when tin was first discovered in Malaysia and rubber cultivation began.

The Chinese came in droves, mostly to the tin mines where they worked under very poor conditions.

The Indians were shipped to the rubber estates where conditions were not much better.

In a way, we have taken a leaf out of our colonialists’ book in how we treat our migrant workers.

But then again, the poor treatment of workers by the British was not the only problem in this equation.

The migrant workers also brought along their many complexities.

In the Chinese community of migrant workers, rival secret societies fought bloody battles for control over tin mines and territories. The most well-known of these societies were the Ghee Hin and Hai San.

The Indian workers didn’t fare better. At a forum on “The Indian Problem” in 2021, an educationist who participated later observed that “generations of Indians grew up knowing only the estate, the estate Tamil school, the estate temple and the estate toddy shop”.

As history has shown, these migrant workers eventually made Malaysia their home and were accepted as citizens.

Many of their descendants are upstanding individuals, having contributed enormously to the country’s growth and development.

While times are different now, there are lessons we can learn from the mistakes of the past.

Of course some solutions then will not be feasible now. For instance, making the Indonesian, Bangladeshi and Filipino workers citizens of this country would be impractical if not politically unviable.

And certainly not giving them “an outlet to release their urges” as suggested by actor-entrepreneur Rosyam Nor.

Treating them with decency and respect would be a good start.

Any move to provide them with decent accommodation, like the hostel that will be built in Penang, would be step in the right direction.

We must not forget that the very same people who are now so dependent on migrant workers could very well be descendants of those who came from China and India so long ago to toil in the tin mines and rubber plantations.

We need migrant workers now, as we did 200 years ago. Without them, the oil palm fruits in the estates will remain unharvested and eventually rot. No new homes will be built because there will be no one to lay the bricks and plaster the walls.

Effectively, the country will come to a standstill.

The 3D — dirty, difficult and dangerous — jobs are the domain of migrant workers now.

This will not change unless Malaysians are prepared to take on such tasks.

The only way is to ensure there is conducive work and living conditions for them. This will help to stem social problems among the migrant community.

We have had 200 years to get it right. About time we did. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.