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Dec 6, 2010
Singapore's Got (migrant worker) Talent
Contest at Marina Bay to mark International Migrants Day
By Teh Joo Lin
HE IS more used to singing to himself in the shower or locker room to relieve fatigue at work.
But Mr Noly Esquierdo Palces has been given the chance to serenade a 10,000-strong audience at The Float@Marina Bay.
The 37-year-old Filipino maintenance foreman is one of 10 finalists who will compete in the Migrant Workers Talent Quest on Dec 19, to mark International Migrants Day.
Mr Palces won a preliminary contest last Saturday with a performance of Tom Jones' Delilah. And he intends to sing another hit by the Welsh singer - I'll Never Fall In Love Again - to try to win the $3,000 top prize.
The talent quest is the [COLOR="_______"]brainchild of the Migrant Workers Centre (MWC)[/COLOR], a non-governmental organisation set up in April last year to help foreign workers settle disputes with employers.
Centre manager Bernard Menon said The Float@Marina Bay is the ideal venue because of its association with events such as the Singapore Grand Prix and the Youth Olympic Games.
Holding the event at this 'iconic symbol' shows that Singapore recognises the workers' contributions, he said.
Last year, MWC held a carnival at Downtown East which drew 15,000 people, including 10,000 foreigners.
International Migrants Day on Dec 18 is a day when countries spread information on the human rights and fundamental freedoms of migrants, who have been growing in numbers worldwide.
Migrant worker issues have gained prominence over the years in Singapore, which relies heavily on foreign labour. Foreign workers here number around 1.05 million - about a third of the workforce. They include maids, blue-collar workers and professionals. In the run-up to International Migrants Day, a day of celebrations was held yesterday to highlight the role played by foreign maids here.
An audience that included maids from Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar was treated to a concert at NTUC Auditorium for Foreign Domestic Workers Day.
Other help groups for foreign workers such as the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) and Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) are also lining up events for International Migrants Day. Home executive director Jolovan Wham said it is holding its sixth anniversary dinner at Chijmes on Sunday and inviting foreign workers, volunteers and donors.
TWC2 will hold a tea party on Sunday for about 200 foreign workers and volunteers at a restaurant in Little India. It is calling on Singapore to support the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families.
When contacted, a Manpower Ministry spokesman said: 'Singapore takes its international treaty obligations very seriously and prefers not to sign international conventions until we are sure that we can fully comply with all their obligations.' He said Singapore has 'a comprehensive set of legislative, administrative and promotional measures to protect the rights of our foreign workers and to ensure their well-being'.
Tickets for The Float@Marina Bay event are available to the public at the entrance from 5.30pm on Dec 19. Mr Palces expects his wife - who works here as a maid - and up to 20 friends to turn up and root for him. He has promised his wife a necklace if he wins.
[email protected]
Foreign workers in Singapore number around 1.05 million - about a third of the workforce. They include maids, blue-collar workers and professionals.
Singapore's Got (migrant worker) Talent
Contest at Marina Bay to mark International Migrants Day
By Teh Joo Lin
HE IS more used to singing to himself in the shower or locker room to relieve fatigue at work.
But Mr Noly Esquierdo Palces has been given the chance to serenade a 10,000-strong audience at The Float@Marina Bay.
The 37-year-old Filipino maintenance foreman is one of 10 finalists who will compete in the Migrant Workers Talent Quest on Dec 19, to mark International Migrants Day.
Mr Palces won a preliminary contest last Saturday with a performance of Tom Jones' Delilah. And he intends to sing another hit by the Welsh singer - I'll Never Fall In Love Again - to try to win the $3,000 top prize.
The talent quest is the [COLOR="_______"]brainchild of the Migrant Workers Centre (MWC)[/COLOR], a non-governmental organisation set up in April last year to help foreign workers settle disputes with employers.
Centre manager Bernard Menon said The Float@Marina Bay is the ideal venue because of its association with events such as the Singapore Grand Prix and the Youth Olympic Games.
Holding the event at this 'iconic symbol' shows that Singapore recognises the workers' contributions, he said.
Last year, MWC held a carnival at Downtown East which drew 15,000 people, including 10,000 foreigners.
International Migrants Day on Dec 18 is a day when countries spread information on the human rights and fundamental freedoms of migrants, who have been growing in numbers worldwide.
Migrant worker issues have gained prominence over the years in Singapore, which relies heavily on foreign labour. Foreign workers here number around 1.05 million - about a third of the workforce. They include maids, blue-collar workers and professionals. In the run-up to International Migrants Day, a day of celebrations was held yesterday to highlight the role played by foreign maids here.
An audience that included maids from Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar was treated to a concert at NTUC Auditorium for Foreign Domestic Workers Day.
Other help groups for foreign workers such as the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) and Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) are also lining up events for International Migrants Day. Home executive director Jolovan Wham said it is holding its sixth anniversary dinner at Chijmes on Sunday and inviting foreign workers, volunteers and donors.
TWC2 will hold a tea party on Sunday for about 200 foreign workers and volunteers at a restaurant in Little India. It is calling on Singapore to support the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families.
When contacted, a Manpower Ministry spokesman said: 'Singapore takes its international treaty obligations very seriously and prefers not to sign international conventions until we are sure that we can fully comply with all their obligations.' He said Singapore has 'a comprehensive set of legislative, administrative and promotional measures to protect the rights of our foreign workers and to ensure their well-being'.
Tickets for The Float@Marina Bay event are available to the public at the entrance from 5.30pm on Dec 19. Mr Palces expects his wife - who works here as a maid - and up to 20 friends to turn up and root for him. He has promised his wife a necklace if he wins.
[email protected]
Foreign workers in Singapore number around 1.05 million - about a third of the workforce. They include maids, blue-collar workers and professionals.
