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| AMCB delegation at last year's May Day rally |
The long-held tradition of marking International Labor Day
on May 1 with massive protest marches across the globe has become the latest
casualty from the coronavirus pandemic.
In Hong Kong , police
announced today, Apr 28, that it has disallowed the holding of two public
meetings and a public procession on May 1, saying that they’re deemed as
high-risk activities amid the spread of the virus.
“Police have grounds
to believe that such activities do not only increase the risk of infecting
participants and other people with Covid-19, but pose a serious threat to the
lives and health of all citizens, jeopardising public safety and affecting the
rights of others,” said a statement posted on the government website.
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| Pindutin para sa detalye! |
In the same statement, the police warned against the holding
of unauthorized assemblies, saying it is a crime for which those found guilty could
be liable to five years’ imprisonment.
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| FDWs use the rally to focus on their unsafe work conditions |
Foreign domestic workers who have long been a visible
presence in the May Day rallies, on the other hand, are heeding the warning, and have come up with
online gatherings instead.
Among them are members of the multi-ethnic group, Asian
Migrants Coordinating Body, which has opted to hold a webinar from 11am to 1pm
, with a panel made up of spokespersons Eni Lestari and Dolores Balladares, as
well as local women’s rights activist Wu Mei Lin.
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The online seminar will include a sharing of migrant workers
from different places – the Philippines ,
Indonesia , Nepal , Thailand ,
Sri Lanka and Macau .
Filipino workers’ groups have also been issuing statements
protesting the implementation of jacked-up premiums for the state health
insurance, PhilHealth.
Another concern is the attempt by Philippine labor officials
to have a migrant worker critical of President Rodrigo Duterte deported from Taiwan
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For the past several Sundays, AMCB and its allied
organizations have also been going around Hong Kong
to distribute face masks and hold a public information campaign on issues that
affect workers’ rights.
