INCREASING MIGRATION NEEDS STRONGER POLICTY RESPONSES, SAYS CROWN PRINCE

PETALING JAYA, Nov 11 (Bernama) -- The increasing scale of migration, which
is resulting in strong economic and social impacts, needs stronger policy
responses, the Crown Prince of Perak, Raja Dr Nazrin Shah, said Thursday.

In formulating migration policies, consultation and cooperation between
states at the sub-regional, regional and global levels were paramount, he said.

"Such policies have traditionally been regarded as the preserve of sovereign
states, but migration is now increasingly acknowledged as a transnational
issue,” Raja Nazrin said at the launch of the inaugural Metropolis Asia:
Building Migration Research Co-operation Conference at Monash University, Sunway
here.

The two-day conference was organised by Metropolis International, Monash
University, the Australian Multicultural Foundation and the Chinese Academy of
Social Sciences.

Metropolis International, a network of researchers, government officials,
and international organisations, plans to develop a Metropolis Asia section for
the Metropolis website that features reports and analyses of conditions, trends,
and policy directions concerning migration and diversity.

Raja Nazrin said the development of migration policies required
high-quality
research to unearth the realities of migration and the lives of migrants, adding
that he was pleased with Metropolis Asia's initiatives.

ASEAN, he said, was a suitable platform to address worker migration and
there had been plans to draw up rules and regulations based on the
recommendations of ASEAN’s Declaration on the Protection and Promotion of the
Rights of Migrant Workers.

But since 2007, it had remained a non-binding declaration, he said.

"A rules-based structure would engender more rights protection and give due
recognition to the contribution of migrant workers to their own and their
receiving countries’ economies. It can also go a long way in mitigating tensions
between member countries that arise from disagreement on migrant worker issues,”
Raja Nazrin added.

Organising Chairperson Professor James Chin said the conference was an
important step towards developing Metropolis Asia.

-- BERNAMA