17/11/2020
House panel asks government to let Nepali women take up domestic help jobs in the Gulf
Some of the recent labour pacts such as with Oman (https://kathmandupost.com/miscellaneous/2018/05/29/nepal-and-oman-mull-labourpact) and the United Arab Emirates (https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/04/26/nepal-and-uae-agree-on-zero-investment-jobs-for-
(/)
nepali-
workers#:~:text=Kathmandu-,Nepal%20and%20the%20United%20Arab%20of%20Emirates%20have%20finalised%20a,Employment%20and%
prioritise special arrangements to protect vulnerable groups, especially Nepali female migrants
(https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/02/06/over-300-nepalis-trafficked-via-india-myanmar-border-from-december-to-january), to
protect them from human trafficking (https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/08/06/nearly-1-5-million-nepali-at-risk-of-humantrafficking-while-35-000-trafficked-last-year-nhrc-report), illegal recruitment, and forced labour.
(https://kathmandupost.com/national/2019/06/28/nepali-women-rescued-in-kenya-will-be-repatriated-soon-officials-say)
Also, there should be no discrimination in terms of facilities, perks, working environment and safety among Nepali and local workers while
engaged in the same kind of work.
The host country should have a law for stringent actions against the local sponsor, host family, employer and any members of the family for
any form of physical, mental and sexual violence against Nepali women. Besides, Nepali domestic workers should have easy access to
communicate with Nepali missions and their families back home.
Nepali women’s migration has long faced a series of bans over the years (http://www.hrpub.org/download/20180730/SA3-19611136.pdf),
which only affects their right to free movement and seek employment. The protectionist approach
(https://kathmandupost.com/2/2019/11/30/nepal-s-migration-labour-policy-by-men-for-men) of the government has long been criticised
for putting women workers in trouble instead as they resort to informal channels and risk falling in the trap of human traffickers.
Labour migration experts welcome the order of the parliamentary committee, but question its immediate implementation and how it will
benefit them.
“The parliamentary committee considering women migrants workers issue and relaxing the ban is a praiseworthy effort,” said Sharu Joshi
Shrestha, a gender and migration expert. “But has it completely solved the issue? The relaxation of the ban with conditions is still impractical.”
According to Shrestha, meeting the seven conditions prescribed by the parliamentary committee would be difficult.
“Meeting all the conditions would be an ideal situation. The decision says both countries should have agreements to protect women workers.
But even when there are no bilateral pacts, domestic workers are also protected by local labour laws,” said Shrestha.
(/author/chandan-kumar-mandal)
Chandan Kumar Mandal (/author/chandan-kumar-mandal)
Chandan Kumar Mandal is the environment and migration reporter for The Kathmandu
Post, covering labour migration and governance, as well as climate change, natural
disasters, and wildlife.
No Credit Card Required
Apply for a Security Bank Personal Loan online. Loan up to 2 Million Pesos!
RELATED NEWS
Seven dead, 11 injured in a fire at Nepali restaurant in Hong Kong on Sunday
×
(/national/2020/11/17/seven-dead-11-injured-in-a-fire-at-nepali-restaurant-in-hong-kong-on-sunday)
(https://worldlink.com.np/offer/5g_offer)
https://kathmandupost.com/national/2020/10/01/house-panel-asks-government-to-let-nepali-women-take-up-domestic-help-jobs-in-the-gulf
3/5