Committee: United Nations Human Right Council

Agenda: Migrant worker crisis in the Middle East

Country: Republic of Türkiye (Turkey)
Name: Anushma Simkhada
School: Pathshala Nepal Foundation

Migrant workers are people who leave home country to find work in foreign countries for better
opportunities, higher wages and higher standards of living. Approximately, 169 million people
are migrant workers which is 4.9 per cent of the global labor force according to International
Labour Organization (ILO) 2021. So, it is important to maintain and prioritize their safety
because migrant workers, are known to be among those who are most at risk of exploitation,
more now than ever due to the rise of increasingly hostile environment in which acts of
xenophobia are common alongside racism, sectarian issues and agonizing conflicts. Turkey,
which has the world's biggest refugee population and one of the biggest migrant worker
populations, is firmly committed to providing basic rights and facilities, including health care
and education, to any and all migrant workers in the country as well as strongly supporting UN
initiatives to minimize the migrant worker crisis, especially in the Middle East.

Turkey ranks 7th as the best country in the globe for migrant/ international workers according to
the latest HSBC Expat Explorer report, taking into considerations the factors provided by the
country in terms of work-life balance, job security, and most importantly safety and quality of
life. The country also fully supports the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s objectives for
migrant workers that states “The project’s central objective is to protect the rights of migrant
workers through organizing, empowerment activities, enhanced cooperation and trade union
support of origin and destination.” Although Turkey's efforts to formulate its policy on
immigration and establish migration management occurred during a period when the crisis had
created a lot of doubt in the labor market the still nation believes migrant or international
workers deserves to have equal rights in their workplace and shall not be subjected to any issue
regarding violation or exploitation unless specifically authorized by the law itself, which is
further justified by Article 17 in the constitution that states “Everyone has the right to life and the
right to protect and improve his/her corporeal and spiritual existence. The corporeal integrity of
the individual shall not be violated except under medical necessity and in cases prescribed by
law. No one shall be subjected to torture or mal-treatment; no one shall be subjected to penalties
or treatment incompatible with human dignity” In addition, The Settlement Law (1934) codified
Turkey's existing fundamental principles and procedures governing migration, giving political
authorities broad flexibility in defining the population descended from Turkish ancestry and
culture, resulting in a flexible and broadly inclusive definition. This legislation also allows
certain Muslim groups to be accepted as "immigrants" depending on the circumstances. Istanbul
is Turkey's largest city with a population of 13,624,240 inhabitants, the city is not simply notable
because of its people but it is also the country's most important service and manufacturing
region. These attributes have made Istanbul the most prominent destination for migration. Since
the end of the 1990s, Istanbul has grown to become one of, if not the most significant
destinations for both domestic and international immigration movements. As per the TUIK
statistics from 2010, while the workforce participation rate in Istanbul is 47.8%, unemployment
and employment rates are 14.3% and 41.0 percent, respectively and Article 17 of the 1934 Law
provides for the immigrant family to receive property, livestock, and farming equipment if they
are farmers, and capital if they are entrepreneurs or artisans, suggesting that the state is
accountable for supplying financial resources to immigrants.

Migrant work crisis is a major issue with the increasing rate violent acts, caused due to
difference in opinion, racial variance and disparities between people. Turkey strongly believes
respecting and maintaining human rights of any and every individual. Countries should enhance
stability, education, and employment opportunities, along with decreasing the drivers of forced
migration. Effort to eliminate workplace prejudice and campaign to unionize more workers (who
have suffered workplace exploitation) must be made to reduce forced migration and ultimately
reduce migrant worker crisis not only in the Middle East but also all around the globe.

Refrence Links:
- https://documentation.lastradainternational.org/lsidocs/3072-
IOM_irregular_labour_migration%20Turkey.pdf

- https://www.ilo.org/ankara/projects/WCMS_379375/lang--en/index.htm

- https://reporting.unhcr.org/turkey

- https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Turkey_2017.pdf?lang=en