Every year, several hundreds of thousands of female migrant workers from Indonesia take on positions as live-in maids or nannies in Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, East Asia, and the Arabic region. Aside from poor pay and often unbearable living and working conditions there, cases of mistreated and sexually abused Indonesian domestic workers are not uncommon. The women are often isolated by employment agencies and employers and are treated like property. Furthermore, they are barely prepared for this situation, have hardly any knowledge of the local language and culture, are often unaware of their rights, or cannot assert them. Conflicts with employers and employment agencies are not resolved in a timely manner and result in violence.

On the initiative of its Asian partners, Mission 21 supports the work of an emergency center for abused domestic workers in Hong Kong with an integrated empowerment program, involving psychological and legal counseling, as well as a wide range of courses. The new transnational program to combat violence against women puts particular emphasis on stepping up prevention in Indonesia’s emigration regions and promoting reintegration. This involves raising awareness about trafficking and prostitution, but also proposing other ways of earning money. When women return home, especially if they are traumatized, have an illegitimate child, or do not have any money, their integration into the existing social and family networks in their homeland proves very difficult and holds potential for conflict. Establishing a network of returned and future female migrant workers allows the women to exchange first-hand experience and advice. Trained facilitators enhance advocacy work for women’s rights at a local, national, and international level. They are currently intensively lobbying in the Indonesian parliament for a more humane law on recruiting and placing female migrant workers.

Conflict sensitivity is essential in all stages of the migration cycle. Gender-based structural and direct violence needs to be addressed, as do tensions among domestic workers themselves, who, for example, come from different cultures and religions and have to live together in a confined space in an emergency center in Hong Kong.