Meet The People Of ASEAN

By Ainul Huda Mohamed Saaid KUALA LUMPUR, April 25 (Bernama) -- The three-day ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ASC), which concluded in the capital Friday, saw the participation of individuals harbouring lofty ambitions for the marginalised group among the region's over 600 million people. They ditched formal attire normally associated with official conferences in favour of traditional costumes, some donning headgear unique to their cultural heritage, while others opted for a T-shirt and jeans combo. Sartorial preferences aside, among the 1,400 attendees of the event, also known as the ASEAN Peoples' Forum, were exceptional individuals who had inspiring stories to tell. Similar to a diamond, their resilience is strong and their personalities shine. Meet Eni Lestari Andayani from Indonesia, a victim of maltreatment and labour exploitation during her employment as a migrant domestic worker in Hong Kong 15 years ago. "Knowing very little of my rights I found myself being treated like a slave. My passport was taken away, working for 18 hours a day and my wages were deducted for the agency fee. I was underpaid, denied days off and treated badly," said the petite, bespectacled 35-year old. After seven months, she ran away and sought help. This is the beginning of her commitment in championing the issues of migrant domestic workers. She and her fellow compatriots founded the Association of Indonesians Migrant Workers in 2000. Since then Eni has not stopped fighting for the welfare and justice of migrant workers, particularly women. Believe it or not, after all these years, she is still a domestic worker in Hong Kong, but of course, under a different employer. "No women and no men, would want to become a migrant worker. But we have to in order to survive. Will the integrated ASEAN Community bring changes to the condition of migrant workers? That remains to be seen," she said. Then there is 62-year old Sawart Pramoonsilp from Thailand, who is not a stranger to ASEAN. She has been to several ASEAN related forums as a representative of an NGO in her country. "I am fighting against the pollution in the industrial areas. There are cases where families including children suffered disability due to working in industrial areas," she told Bernama while clutching a folded cane in her right hand. Sawart has never been married. She now works with the blind, training them to be independent and helping them to find jobs. The blind hold a special place in Sawart's heart for she is also blind. She lost her eyesight two years ago. ASEAN is not short of resourceful young men. One of them is Salai Ling Houng, a 26-year old bachelor from Myanmar, who proudly walks around in his nation's traditional sarong called longyi. Salai and his friends are working for the survival of indigenous people and environment in their country. "We represent the indigenous people in Myanmar and hope to advocate our government through this ASEAN channel about this issue. With the mass help from other ASEAN NGOs and organisations it will be more effective and supportive for us," said Salai who also works as a research officer. --BERNAMA