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The multiple crises of the capitalist system continue to worsen especially at this time of the global pandemic. People lose their jobs and the rate of unemployment continues to rise. This forces people into abject poverty and with the global pandemic, the real condition of the healthcare system was exposed and marginalized people are struggling to receive health care services.
Nearly two years have passed and a lot of people, especially in the underdeveloped countries remain unvaccinated. This is happening despite booster shots being administered among people in developed and developing countries. Such conditions all the more expose the unevenness and the inability of many governments to respond to the needs of its people.
This condition, especially in the underdeveloped world, forces people to find other means in order to survive and address their basic human needs like food, housing, health care services, and education. There are now 281 million international migrants which is 3.6 percent of the global population according to the International Organization for Migration or IOM. In the Philippines, almost 10 percent of its population are living and working abroad with almost half working as temporary migrants and a considerable number are without proper working documents.
The current migration we have is a forced one and its roots can be attributed to the worsening economic, political and environmental conditions in the home country. Meanwhile, states where most of the migrants are from have taken advantage of the situation to institutionalize and profit from the exportation of human labor. Such is the case of the Philippines where for almost 50 years, export of labor was developed into a major industry and government earns from the meagre salaries of Filipino migrants through their remittances and revenues from various government fees. This condition makes the country “financially sound” at least on paper and become more attractive for foreign loans. This is one way of how neoliberalism plays its role in the economy of countries like the Philippines and other third world nations.
The capitalist crises make it an imperative to launch national and social liberation movements. In such movements, all oppressed and exploited peoples have role including overseas nationals.
What is the role of overseas compatriots in national and democratic struggles in their home country? What can migrants do to advance solidarity and the people’s fight against imperialism?
Main Speaker: Prof Jose Maria Sison, ILPS Chair Emeritus
Reactors:
- Mohammed Khatib, European Coordinator of Samidoun Solidarity Network for Palestinian Political Prisoners
- Nilufer Koc, Spokesperson for the Commission on Foreign Relations of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK)
- Gabriela Malespin, Co-Chairperson of the New York Boricua Resistance
