Malawi youth labour export want to return home-MCTU
The Malawi Congress of Trade Unions (MCTU) has claimed to have information that most young people who were sent to foreign countries through the labour export initiative of the Joyce Banda’s administration want to come back home.
MCTU claims to have received negative reports indicating that most of the youths were subjected to harsh conditions while others did not get jobs they were promised before they left the country.
Former president Joyce Banda’s administration rolled out the initiative to reduce poverty, exporting the youths to countries like South Korea, Kuwait and Dubai and it was targeting over 100,000 youths across the country.
“We received some negative reports regarding the initiative. Some of them contacted their relatives that they wish to come back.
“You may also wish to know that many did not get jobs that they were promised,” claimed Elijah Pontius Kalichero, MCTU Secretary General.
Kalichero then hailed the current administration for suspending the labour export initiative.
MCTU was largely against the initiative and it cautioned the former administration to tread carefully on exporting Malawians to foreign lands.
According to MCTU, government rushed to start exporting the youths without consulting relative stakeholders.
“Consultations were not made. If government had made clear especially the type of work it identified for the youths, we wouldn’t haven against the initiative,” said Kalichero.
The scheme met with scepticism with some analysts calling it “modern day slavery”. Others cite unsavoury reports that expose how immigrant workers are mistreated, underpaid, even raped in the Asian country.
An Amnesty International report documents what it called “a history of abuses” migrant workers have to endure.
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