In response to the letter (应深入关注客工露宿天桥问题24 Mar), which came after a photo of several migrant workers sleeping outdoors at the Silat Road housing estate was published (印度客工露宿天桥, 17 Mar), I would like to share that two of my colleagues and I from the Migrant Workers' Centre (MWC) visited the overhead bridge and it's vicinity from midnight till 3am on the weekend of 17 and 18 March.
Our objective was to speak with migrant workers who might be spending the night there and to find out if they needed assistance with housing, work injury or other welfare problems. We did not encounter any such case although we did speak about the issue with some foreign students staying in the area who had gathered outdoors.
MWC will be working with the Ministry of Manpower, other government agencies, grassroots organisations as well as the Silat Road Sikh Temple to address the issue of migrant workers who sleep outdoors in the estate. We will also continue to provide emergency assistance to migrant workers in distress, protect their rights and well-being and promote fairness in the treatment of all workers.
We would like to encourage migrant workers and concerned members of the public who know of migrant workers with housing or work injury issues to visit MWC at 62 Rangoon Road. We are open from Tuesday to Fri from 9am to 7pm and Saturday to Sunday from11am to 3pm. We may also be contacted at 6536 2692.
Edwin Pang
Executive Director
Migrant Workers' Centre
