What's this programme about?
The Advoc8 Legal Affairs programme, conducted from April 2022 until February 2023, aimed to improve positive attitudes by increasing empathy and shifting behaviour amongst future law practitioners by fostering strong gender and trauma-sensitive approaches. Through immersive and interactive experiences, it helped to equip law students with the knowledge and skills to handle cases involving women migrant workers.
This campaign was made possible by Safe and Fair, a programme implemented through a partnership between the ILO and UN Women, in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), with the overriding objective of ensuring that labour migration is safe and fair for all women in the ASEAN region. It is a part of the Spotlight Initiative to eliminate violence against women and girls, a multi-year initiative between the European Union and the United Nations.
Workshop
As part of the programme, the workshops sought to provide a clearer picture to help law students understand whether Malaysian laws protect women migrant workers by illustrating the experiences that these individuals experience.
Fellowship Programme
The 2-month Fellowship Programme was a hands-on learning experience designed to sensitise future law practitioners on the issues and challenges faced by women migrant workers in Malaysia, especially when getting access to justice.
30 Fellows were selected to participate in this programme where they were closely mentored by experienced lawyers and received masterclasses conducted by Global Shepherds, a Malaysian NGO managing shelters for trafficked victims. As part of their immersive experiences, the Fellows were brought on various field trips to the Human Trafficking Court and the National Strategic Office of the Council for Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants (NSO MAPO).
What did this programme achieve?
What did this programme achieve?
Published research paper on the Legal Network Series
Three Fellows continued their efforts and passion into writing and publishing a research paper called “Migrant Workers’ Rights in Malaysia: The Challenges and Limitations” with guidance from one of the mentors in the Fellowship Programme.
University Events
Two Fellows from Brickfields Asia College and HELP University organised a programme at their university to educate their peers about the issue.
Volunteering
A Fellow has been actively volunteering her time every weekend at one of our partnering organisation’s TIP shelter. Her vision is to be a human rights lawyer fighting for underprivileged communities in the future.
Inspiring Mentors
Mentors also benefited from the programme. 2 out of 5 mentors have been doing pro-bono work with organisations that are providing aid to migrant workers to fight for their rights. These mentors were initially only exposed to the Employment Act but not the issue of TIP or the challenges that migrant workers face.