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Situation
of migrants and refugees
The
local Church's response
Future planning and strategy from the perspective of the
Church in Asia
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Pastoral
Care of Migrants and Refugess
A Consultative Meeting
ASIA
A SURVEY SUMMARY
1. In September 1991,
the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants distributed a
survey to twenty National Episcopal Conferences in Asia and the Pacific Rim requesting
information and assessment on the situation of migrants and refugees in their perspective
areas. We received eleven responses from national Episcopal Commissions on Migrations,
national representatives, and a diocesan report. The respondents include: Australia,
Bangladesh, Thailand, Pakistan, Philippines, Taiwan (Republic of China), Korea, Arab
countries, the Office for the Promotion of the Laotian Apostolate in Diaspora, Japan (a
report on AISA Yokohama: "Church for the Migrant Workers") and Hong Kong
("The Vietnamese Migrants in Hong Kong").
2. In the survey, each
national Episcopal Commission on Migration was requested to describe three major areas: I.
The Situation of Migrants and Refugees II. The Local Church's Response and III. Future
Planning and Strategy from the Perspective of the Church in Asia. A summary of the
responses of the survey follows.
3. Situation of migrants and refugees:
Emigration of Asian
nationals to other countries has continued to increase in recent years. Reasons which
contributed to such movement are: employment, immigration, family reunification, and
studies. Major countries which receive Asian nationals for the above reasons are the
United States, Canada, Australia, and some European countries. Other nations which receive
Asian nationals for employment are the countries in the Middle East, Japan, Taiwan, Hong
Kong, Korea, Singapore and Malaysia.
There has been an
increase of internal migrations in the past 20-40 years in most of the countries
responding to the survey. A major reason for this movement is the increase of
industrialization in big cities which results in the process of urbanization. People move
from the impoverished rural areas to big cities. A frightening consequences of this
phenomenon is "swelling ranks of slums."
Refugees in Asia are
Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis (Kurds), Sri Lankans, Bangladeshis, Vietnamese, Laotians,
Cambodians, Islamic Filipinos in Sabah, Burmese (Rohingyas, Karens), Indians (Biharis).
Many Asian countries become first asylum countries with established refugee camps.
1. General concerns about
refugees as described by respondents are issues of forced repatriation, adequate
humanitarian response to refugee crisis, protection of asylum seekers, maintenance and
ongoing financial support for refugees who stay longer, living conditions in refugee and
detention camps.
2. General concerns about
migrants are: problems with shelters and accommodation for families and individuals,
issues affecting female migrant workers, job possibilities, illegal foreign workers,
illegal recruitment schemes, inhumane working conditions, health problems, and depletion
and abuses of natural resources.
"Illegal practices
perpetrated against workers are of various nature. Beginning with false information and
propaganda, to promising and selling non-existent jobs, to charging illegal fees or fees
that are above the limit imposed by the government, to providing false documentation or
work contracts that do not become effective in the place of work."
"The government has
decided to send home all illegal workers… However, they remain in hiding and their
employers oppose the policy of repatriation because they need the workers to keep their
factories running."
e.
1. Additional critical issues mentioned are spiritual, psychological and other
non-material problems. For migrant workers, the issues are violations of human rights,
unethical and immortal treatment toward illegal migrant workers, xenophobia and unjust
legal measures applied toward them, lack of welcome, separation of family members,
distorted values of life ("Overseas workers must be instilled with the idea that
money is not the ultimate value and should not be earned at any cost"), lack of legal
protection, inadequate spiritual and pastoral care, and the prohibition of religious
worship, spiritual and pastoral formation in certain countries.
2. For refugees, the
spiritual and psychological problems affect deeply the vulnerable, particularly the young,
women and the elderly. These traumas are separation from family members, and the
uncertainty of life. "The have difficulties in seeing their options and making
decisions about their lives. Feelings of hopelessness, anger, frustrations, and
resignation are very common. Hunger strikes, hostilities, depressions and suicidal
attempts are examples of ways detainee express dissent and dissatisfaction." These
living conditions in refugee camps offend their human dignity.
Those refugees who resettle in third countries also face acculturation problems such as
the challenge of how to live the traditional, moral and religious values by younger and
elderly members in the new society. In some case, the lack of religious personnel to care
for them and the lack of cultural understanding from the receiving Church are sources of
alienation and marginalization from the Church.
4. The local Church's response:
a. In most countries,
there are established structures at the Episcopal Conference level, such as the Episcopal
Commission on Migration, Commission on Social Development, Commission on Justice and
Peace; national Caritas, national relief organizations; and at the level of dioceses, and
local parishes. Particularly on the local level, the ministry to refugees and migrants is
carried out by dedicated laity, religious women and men.
b. 1. Material and social
assistance provided is varied and depends on the particular circumstances. In some
countries, the Church helps in organizing workers for mutual support, legal counseling,
advocacy, in providing drop-in centers, and sensitizing its own members to the situation
of migrants and refugees. Others help by acting as resources for communication, providing
direct emergency relief, and intervening when human rights of migrants, refugees and
asylum seekers are being violated. In a traditional resettlement country, the Church
lobbies for governmental policies in favor of migrants and refugees.
2. In
terms of pastoral care, the Churches in Asia have a heightened awareness to this critical
need. This pastoral assistance includes inviting migrant workers to participate in
services in local parishes, some form of integration when welcoming migrants, organizing
religious formation and sacramental programs. The Churches of some sending countries have
provided priests and nuns to minister their people outside their own countries.
The Church arranges visits to refugee camps for catechists, priests and bishops from the
sending countries. There are pastoral services which are provided by local dioceses.
c. The Churches in Asia
have limited collaboration with national and international relief/development and
humanitarian agencies. Among themselves, they have some collaboration particularly in the
exchange of priests, information, study and survey. To express solidarity with other
Churches in Asia, a willingness for collaboration has been exhibited in the field of
migrations. Pertaining to this issue of migrations, it is suggested that there be more
regional cooperation and coordination regarding pastoral and social assistance to
refugees, migrants and overseas workers.
5. Future
planning and strategy from the perspective of the Church in Asia:
a. It has been unanimously
recognized by the Churches in Asia that migration (the presence of foreign workers,
refugees, displaced people, internal migrants, seafarers, etc.) is the inescapable
challenging reality for years to come, a "sign of the times." This phenomenon of
human mobility can no longer be treated as an "accident of history."
"… Migrants within Asian countries cannot remain unnoticed by the local
Church."
b. Future planning and
strategies by the Churches in Asia to respond to this phenomenon must be rooted in
"prayerful and theological reflections based on biblical interpretation and the
social teaching of the Church." In her response, the Church must uphold the
"human dignity" of these people for the conscience of mankind, and particularly
out of "the fidelity of the Church to herself." The responsibility of the Church
in this regard must be expressed as a "commitment," and "apostolate,"
a "mission," because it "is coming from the Christian charity and human
solidarity." The 'Way Farer," in the Biblical context, must always be given a
special place."
c. 1. A
response "should be based on the accurate assessment of the situation of migration
and refugees in Asia and an analysis of the root causes of the problems." The Church
in Asia can bring about an integrated response by assisting to "unravel one by one
the political, juridical, cultural, logistic and religious implications of the
situations."
2. The
Church in Asia needs to address these "issues affecting human rights, economic and
social justice, labor and wages, and environmental issues." "Economic and social
justice in their origin country should be improved to prevent migrants and refugees (flow)
and put it as the first priority in the pastoral plan." They must examine and address
these issues affecting migrants, refugees and displaced people from the standpoint of
"the social teaching of the Church."
3.
Particularly poignant to the Church's calling is the pastoral response which includes the
coordination of religious personnel for the care of migrant workers, asylum seekers and
refugees. The mission of Christian migrants and refugees is "to be aware of their
obligation to bear witness always to their faith and love of Christ" (Redemptoris
Missio, 82). Because of the receiving Church's responsibilities of welcoming, and because
of diversified religious backgrounds, strategies for religious dialogue must be promoted
in the field of migration.
d. Regarding future
planning and strategies for implementation of a human mobility apostolate at the regional
level, various respondents suggested a structure should be implemented in the form of a
"committee," "a coordinating body," "a regional center of
information," "a regional network for cooperation and coordination." It is
also essential to strengthen and promote the existing networks (the Episcopal Commissions
of Migration, national Caritas in Asian countries) and develop mutual collaboration
through present mechanisms, like OHD-FABC, APHD, and other international Catholic
organizations.
6. In conclusion,
this survey summary intends to give a general picture of the responses. Its aims is to be
a beginning step for further discussion, and for a deeper scrutiny into the phenomenon of
human mobility in Asia. It is often said that every plant or herbage tells us its use by
the form of its blossom, roots or leaves. So too a human being can reveal his character
through his outward form. For this reason, we need to ask what does the modern human
mobility in Asia tells us about its people, its society and its nations?
Migrations as described
from the responses demonstrate the two predominant types of human mobility. The first one
is characterized by its violent nature. People are forced to move due to some kind of
persecution or other, and thus, they become refugees and displaced people. What does it
say about the people and governments that violate human rights? What does it say about
armed conflicts? What does it say about the business of arms trades? How does the Church
live within such countries and maintain a sense of "in the world but not of the
world," and become prophetic at the same time?
The second form of
migration is characterized by the pursuit of economic gain within and outside Asia. Asians
from poorer nations seek employment in the growing industrialized Asian nations and in
other continents. With this particular issue, labor and migration, the Holy Father John
Paul II, in his Encyclical Letter, Centesimus Annus, reminds us about the danger of human
exploitation. "In spite of the great changes which have taken place in the more
advanced societies, the human inadequacies of capitalism and the resulting domination of
things over people are far from disappearing… In some regions and in some social
sectors of the world, development programs have been set up which are centered on the use
not so much of the material resources available but of the "'human resources'."
(CA, 33) It is the one dimensional regard of man that prompts the Holy Father to remind
the Church that "her sole purpose has been care and responsibility for
man…" (CA, 53).
C. Though the survey
does not examine the one element of human travelling, namely, tourism, this is a cause of
concern by the Bishops of Asia as written in the Final Statement of the Fifth Plenary
Assembly of FABC, "Journeying Together Toward the Third Millennium." "In
situations of poverty and injustice it is usually women who suffer the most. We see this
in the flourishing of exploitative tourism, where women and children are driven into
prostitution…" (FABC, Final Statement, 2.2.1)
The Church in Asia,
though a minority among many religious traditions (Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Shinto,
Confucianism, Taoism), may often have an outlook diverse from others in the many realities
of human migrations. There is an urgent call for dialogue concerning the field of human
mobility and its implications.
It is not our intention
to dichotomize man into various parts, because "without doubt, man is whole in unity
of body and should" (De Pastorali Migratorum Cura, 5). However, the response to the
needs of migration, often tends to be focused only on material assistance. The Church in
her mission of salvation must not place lesser significance on the irreplaceable role
which she has in sustaining the spirit of these uprooted people. For this reason she must
engage in promoting every pastoral activity suitable for accompanying migrants and refuges
wherever they go. She must therefore implement special pastoral structures, new forms of
apostolate and adapted liturgy, coordination and information between the particular
Churches, sensitization and the formation of pastoral workers. Every way must be attempted
in order to save and strengthen the faith and Christian values of migrants and refugees so
that they are motivated to live according to their own dignity.
Pontifical Council for
the Pastoral Care of
Migrants and Itinerant People
March 1992
Vatican City |
