Republic of the Union of Myanmar
National Unity Government
Ministry of Labour
email: [email protected]
Announcement No. (7/2023)
September 8, 2023
Announcement Regarding Family Remittances of Myanmar Migrant Workers Working in Foreign Countries
- The terrorist military council, which has already been declared as a terrorist organisation, and its nominal Ministry of Labour, in order to fulfil the urgent need of the foreign currency to prolong their term and terrorise the public, are attempting to exploit the sweat money of the migrant workers, by a letter of instruction dated 30-8-2023 in which it was forcibly directed to overseas employment agencies to send at least 25% of the basic salary of the migrant workers as family remittances every month or once every three months through their designated remittance services.
- Recognising the effectiveness and significance of Myanmar migrant workers in the movements of uprooting the military dictatorship and establishing a federal democratic union, the terrorist military purposefully issued this instruction to oppress the workers with arbitrary power and to exploit the workers’ sweat money for purchasing weapons and ammunition for terrorist acts that torture and kill people, as well as military aircraft fuel to bomb villages.
- This action is not in compliance with the existing law, the Law Relating to the Overseas Employment, 1999 and is illegal coercion of agencies and workers beyond the law, thus it is completely unnecessary for overseas employment agencies to comply with the instructions of the terrorist military council. And agencies are explicitly cautioned for deducting salaries/wages or forcing workers to comply.
- The National Unity Government has already announced that an illegal terrorist organization’s directive; any instructions are invalid and it will be automatically void. Therefore, Myanmar migrant workers are no reason to be concerned about the instruction as the contracts formed between an overseas employment agencies and migrant workers, which include limiting and controlling the family remittances of workers, and oppression and coercion of the workers and agencies are likewise void. Workers are encouraged to prevent bloodshed by providing their hard-earned money to the terrorist military, and to avoid doing financial transactions with the banks controlled by the military , private banks and financial service providers that deal with it.
- The National Unity Government hereby announce that it will take effective and severe action against any agency or person who acts to exert pressure the transfer by deducting from the wages of migrant workers or in any other way.
Ministry of Labor
National Unity Government