Even though the government forbid sending domestic workers to foreign countries, more and more of Myanmar women are going abroad as domestic workers via illegal job agencies.

“There are illegal agencies sending domestic workers to abroad. They not just send domestic workers but also any kinds of workers to abroad. There are a lot of illegal Myanmar domestic workers in various countries,” informed an identified officer from Labor Ministry.

He also added that it is difficult to punish the agencies unless a victim reports the incident.

“It does not matter if they go legally or not, we (the ministry) have to solve any problem they face while abroad. They should know if they are staying legally. We cannot enforce any punishment upon the agencies if there is no report,” he explained.

Even though the number of illegal job agencies has recently dropped, workers are still being sent to foreign countries illegally.

Most of the domestic workers are sent to Singapore and Thailand. The official explained that some of the workers go abroad with visit visa but start working once arrived.

The government confirmed that no domestic workers are legally allowed and it will stay the same in the future.

By Eleven Myanmar
Published on 23 March 2013