Permanent Mission of India
Geneva
****
39th Session of Human Rights council
(10 -28 September 2018)
Statement by India at the Clustered Interactive Dialogue with SR on contemporary forms of slavery – Delivered by Dr. Sadre Alam, First Secretary
Mr. President,
1. We thank the SR and the Independent Expert for their reports. Our statement is restricted to the SR’s report.
2. Contemporary forms of slavery unfortunately is an issue of global concern, occurring in every region and mostly in the private economy.
3. All migrant workers, irrespective of their legal status are entitled to human rights, essential services and decent work.
4. Women domestic workers are among the most vulnerable and marginalized subset among migrant workers.
5. Gender sensitive application of human rights and relevant labour standards, including access to justice and portable social security in the global domestic economy through a multi-stakeholder partnership is necessary for addressing its contemporary forms of slavery.
6. India accords top priority to ensuring a safe, orderly, legal and humane migration process. We are a signatory to all the core ILO Conventions related to forced and child labour and have ratified the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and its three protocols. Our Government has taken several initiatives to strengthen the migration ecosystem to protect and support migrant workers, especially those more vulnerable, in all stages of migration cycle and promote their welfare.
7. We appreciate SR’s recommendations in the report. We feel that remedies to address causes and consequences such as poverty and underdevelopment, examples of global best practices and measures to strengthen international cooperation could be further explored and shared in order to assist States in their national efforts to prevent and combat contemporary forms of slavery and achieve SDG 8.7.
Thank you, Mr. President.
10 September 2018
