“Panorama Shymkent”, (119) 18.07.2008
E. Berdigalieva

   In contrast to our Russian neighbors attitudes towards migrant workers of our citizens in general are tolerant. For southerners cheap labor, provided by migrants, significantly improves their lives: who builds houses, cottages, and who is to repairs flats.
   Unfortunately, the influx of migrant workers in the country is inevitable and a natural process as migrants search for employment in foreign countries. This is fraught with negative consequences: Many employers hire migrants without a permit, illegally, so as to get around taxes. Because of this, migrant workers often lack health insurance, and have few social safeguards in temporary employment. It happens frequently, so that the owners often to not end up paying the migrants and even worse humiliate and beat them.
   I have seen that the Uzbeks are master builders. Over the three months they built a private home for the local nouveau riche. During the construction the builders slept, use a primitive toilet, located a respectable distance from the building owner of the house. From 6 am until late into the night they worked, including Saturday and Sunday, while, as we have seen, they did not have any basic household devices.
   Recently a seminar on the legislation of Kazakhstan in the field of labor migration was organized by the International Organization for Migration in Kazakhstan and the Legal Center for Women’s Initiatives “Sana Sezim”, in part of a project on labor migration in Central Asia, the rights of migrants, as well as the legislative resolution of these issues in our country.
   Even if we speak about the processes of labor migration in a global sense, managing its processes is a key factor to affecting the relations traditionally established between the countries, the combined multi-year friendship, neighborhood, and shared history.
   Uzbekistan has long been famous for their hard work for many years to the people of our region. It is difficult to go to the Shymkent bazaars during the summer, without seeing fruits and vegetables from Uzbekistan. One can hardly justify the vulgar, slavish attitude towards these people who are now forced to earn their livelihoods in our area through hard work in the construction industry.
   Today, countries accepting and sending migrant workers are seeking ways to balance adequate regulation of their flow with the interests of travelers, and the population of the countries where they arrive.
   Participants of the workshop, which included representatives of the regional migration services and the media, discussed the realities and prospects of immigration legislation, and the possibility of improvement of the situation of labor migrants, both in Kazakhstan and in the region as a whole.
   IOM sent a participant with experience in the field of migration management, Aina Shormanbaeva. Anara Ibraeva from the Office of Human Rights and the Rule of Law held a session for students on the Kazakh and international legislation concerning the rights of migrant workers.
   According to A. Shormanbaevoy, the registered bank charges from Kazakhstan to other countries for the year totaled over one billion dollars and in the country more than 2 million foreigners were registered, the amount of irregular migrant workers ranging from half a million people. However, as evidenced by Kazinform, during operations off the MIA of RK, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, of KNB RK “Illegal 2008” held from June 2-6, 2008, 17,844 foreign nationals and stateless persons were expelled from the country, by a court decision 2493 foreigners.
   For violations of the rules of engagement and use of foreign labor the administrative responsibilities involve 391 employers. 39 foreigners have been arrested for committing various types of crimes.
   There is interesting data on the migration processes in South Kazakhstan, reported in the chief WMD SKO of the Abayskogo District, Nysambaeva’s speech.
   Each year, according to the data of their services, the flow of arrivals is growing by 20-25 per cent monthly, meaning that about 80 000 citizens enter in six months. The staff recorded the arrival of 44 000 foreign nationals, including 38 000 Uzbeks and over one thousand Kyrgyz, and four thousand Russians. 90 percent of those entering were motivated by “private matters”, but in fact it turns out are working illegally.
   More than 4 thousand foreigners were found during checks on illegal work (agricultural seasonal jobs, construction, etc.). Over 280 employers were held with administrative responsibility for violating immigration laws. But as was said at the seminar, this is only a drop in the ocean of violations related to labor migration. All this suggests is that legislative effort to regulate migration processes need further refinement.
   According to M. Dzhakupova, a lawyer at NGO “Sana Sezim”, in the course of monitoring several types of fees, levied on migrant workers by law enforcement officials for being in our country, exist to circumvent existing laws. For example, the lack of a work permit can be ignored for 2000 tenge, the absence of migration card for 200 tenge, etc.
   In general, if a migrant worker agrees to work illegally, and ensures that he will not have issues with representatives of the government, it will cost 45 thousand tenge, to stay in our region.
   It is no secret that hundreds and thousands of migrant workers continue to come, from places like Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, in the shadow of bypass roads, which never have police and border guards. For the same tracks illegal way to a neighboring country and our countrymen.
   At the seminar the animated film “Not all gold” directed by M. Dzharimbetova, was shown. The film is about how our people fall for the bright promises of the alleged foreign employers who are in the network of human trafficking; particularly sexual slavery.
   The purpose of the seminar was to discuss how one can help migrant workers legalize their stay in the country of arrival, and the relation of migrants and local people. It was realized during the discussions and exchanges of views between the organizers and participants.