Foreign Workers Service Community
Foreign Workers Support Network
How do we treat our own migrant workers?
Let’s discard the “plastic hearts” in us
These days it is becoming a fashion to celebrate all sorts of occasions on a grand scale. In fact we look for excuses to have mammoth celebrations such as birthdays, all forms of anniversaries, engagements, wedding, silver, golden and diamond jubilees. Then there are the major festivals of Christmas and New Year and so on.
With our preoccupation with celebrating these festivals and glorifying ourselves for our successes in life, we forget the less fortunate among us. Many of them are in agony and awaiting death to separate them from their loved ones forever.
This true story may be of help to make us aware us of these unfortunate people in our midst and make us reflect on how we should be modest in celebrating our own festivals and successes in life.
Mr.Z was a 36-year-old unskilled worker from Bangladesh. He has been employed in the same company for the last 8 years. He was paid a basic salary of RM500 a month and if he worked hard enough he could take home just over RM1000 with all his overtime claims. He sent most of his earnings back home for his wife and son.
For the last 5 months he has been unwell, seeking treatment at various government hospitals. He presented with acute complications and has been found to advance cancer, which has spread all over. Cure was not possible and all that could be done was to palliate his symptoms. He just had a few months to live.
On realizing that he has been inflicted with a deadly disease, he broke down and cried incessantly, saying “Please send me back to Bangladesh. I want to see my wife and son”.
He continued to weep, saying repeatedly “ I don’t want to work, I don’t want the money,I just want to see my wife and son. Please send me back”.
It was a pathetic state watching the young man crying bitterly over his totally wrecked life. Money and wealth did not matter to him anymore. All he wanted was to be united with his loved ones. Only that would bring him solace in the remaining days of his life.
According to Z, during his eight-year tenure in our country, he went back to Bangladesh just once three years ago to get married. After just 2 weeks with his newly wedded wife, he left her to return to Malaysia to continue with his job. His repeated requests for leave to visit his wife in subsequent years were rejected by his manager, whom he described as a “man with a plastic heart”, because according to him, the boss was devoid of any feelings of compassion for the workers. Even when his son was born he was not allowed to return home for a short visit. He was yet to see his son who was then 2 years old.
Little did he know that he would be going back to his son for the first and last time in his life? His young wife too had just spent 2 weeks with him soon after their marriage. In a matter of months he would have to bid them the final farewell.
All we could do for him was help to send him back to spend his final days of his life with his loved ones. This we managed to do with the help of his concerned new superior officer. Z touched me by his gesture to come to bid farewell to me on the eve of his departure. As I shook his hands to wish him luck, I felt extremely sad as I knew I would never see him again.
As a doctor I stood helpless to watch this young man slowly dying as the cancer took its course. How I wish I could have cured him of his illness. All I could do was to heal him of pain and agony. Not everyone can die cured but at least we can let them die healed. That was exactly what I tried to do.
It is very pitiful that many of us also contribute to this inhumane treatment of fellow men. There are many Z’s in our midst. It is our “plastic hearts” that have caused so much agony to them. As Christians we are taught to be kind and generous, but in actual fact are we? All of us possess this “plastic heart” at some time in our lives.
As we prepare to celebrate our festivities and successes, let us discard these “plastic hearts” of ours and try to cultivate some compassion for fellow men, irrespective of race or creed. Z,like many migrant workers are being exploited by our own people, denying them basic amenities and rights that we preach in our churches. As employers of domestic maids, how do we treat them? Do we realize that Jesus is in disguise in these maids?
As for Z, we hope and pray that God will grant him peace and love during his final days.
The new trend of mammoth celebrations to glorify ourselves for our successes is also taking shape in our Catholic Church. It is becoming a fashion for Catholics, laity and clergy, to celebrate priestly ordination, jubilees (silver, golden and diamond) and other feast days on a very grand scale.
Many bishops and priests converge to concelebrate the occasion with mass and banquet attended by thousands of people from all over the country. A great deal of money, time and energy are spent on these mammoth celebrations. Unfortunately when the ordinary parishioner is in need we are not there to share his happiness and sorrow.
The Catholic Church, founded on the teachings of Christ, is a Church of the masses but unfortunately today it is increasingly being seen as the Church of the clergy, the rich and the powerful.
May be we should also reflect on the action of Mother Teresa on being awarded the1979 Nobel Peace Price. After initial reluctance she finally agreed to accept it with the following words:
" But I am grateful to receive (the Nobel) in the name of the hungry, the naked, the homeless, of the crippled, of the blind, of the lepers, of all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared-for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone."
However she refused the reception to honor her probably because she felt her work for God needs no human glorification and reward.
Dr.Chris Anthony
These days it is becoming a fashion to celebrate all sorts of occasions on a grand scale. In fact we look for excuses to have mammoth celebrations such as birthdays, all forms of anniversaries, engagements, wedding, silver, golden and diamond jubilees. Then there are the major festivals of Christmas and New Year and so on.
With our preoccupation with celebrating these festivals and glorifying ourselves for our successes in life, we forget the less fortunate among us. Many of them are in agony and awaiting death to separate them from their loved ones forever.
This true story may be of help to make us aware us of these unfortunate people in our midst and make us reflect on how we should be modest in celebrating our own festivals and successes in life.
Mr.Z was a 36-year-old unskilled worker from Bangladesh. He has been employed in the same company for the last 8 years. He was paid a basic salary of RM500 a month and if he worked hard enough he could take home just over RM1000 with all his overtime claims. He sent most of his earnings back home for his wife and son.
For the last 5 months he has been unwell, seeking treatment at various government hospitals. He presented with acute complications and has been found to advance cancer, which has spread all over. Cure was not possible and all that could be done was to palliate his symptoms. He just had a few months to live.
On realizing that he has been inflicted with a deadly disease, he broke down and cried incessantly, saying “Please send me back to Bangladesh. I want to see my wife and son”.
He continued to weep, saying repeatedly “ I don’t want to work, I don’t want the money,I just want to see my wife and son. Please send me back”.
It was a pathetic state watching the young man crying bitterly over his totally wrecked life. Money and wealth did not matter to him anymore. All he wanted was to be united with his loved ones. Only that would bring him solace in the remaining days of his life.
According to Z, during his eight-year tenure in our country, he went back to Bangladesh just once three years ago to get married. After just 2 weeks with his newly wedded wife, he left her to return to Malaysia to continue with his job. His repeated requests for leave to visit his wife in subsequent years were rejected by his manager, whom he described as a “man with a plastic heart”, because according to him, the boss was devoid of any feelings of compassion for the workers. Even when his son was born he was not allowed to return home for a short visit. He was yet to see his son who was then 2 years old.
Little did he know that he would be going back to his son for the first and last time in his life? His young wife too had just spent 2 weeks with him soon after their marriage. In a matter of months he would have to bid them the final farewell.
All we could do for him was help to send him back to spend his final days of his life with his loved ones. This we managed to do with the help of his concerned new superior officer. Z touched me by his gesture to come to bid farewell to me on the eve of his departure. As I shook his hands to wish him luck, I felt extremely sad as I knew I would never see him again.
As a doctor I stood helpless to watch this young man slowly dying as the cancer took its course. How I wish I could have cured him of his illness. All I could do was to heal him of pain and agony. Not everyone can die cured but at least we can let them die healed. That was exactly what I tried to do.
It is very pitiful that many of us also contribute to this inhumane treatment of fellow men. There are many Z’s in our midst. It is our “plastic hearts” that have caused so much agony to them. As Christians we are taught to be kind and generous, but in actual fact are we? All of us possess this “plastic heart” at some time in our lives.
As we prepare to celebrate our festivities and successes, let us discard these “plastic hearts” of ours and try to cultivate some compassion for fellow men, irrespective of race or creed. Z,like many migrant workers are being exploited by our own people, denying them basic amenities and rights that we preach in our churches. As employers of domestic maids, how do we treat them? Do we realize that Jesus is in disguise in these maids?
As for Z, we hope and pray that God will grant him peace and love during his final days.
The new trend of mammoth celebrations to glorify ourselves for our successes is also taking shape in our Catholic Church. It is becoming a fashion for Catholics, laity and clergy, to celebrate priestly ordination, jubilees (silver, golden and diamond) and other feast days on a very grand scale.
Many bishops and priests converge to concelebrate the occasion with mass and banquet attended by thousands of people from all over the country. A great deal of money, time and energy are spent on these mammoth celebrations. Unfortunately when the ordinary parishioner is in need we are not there to share his happiness and sorrow.
The Catholic Church, founded on the teachings of Christ, is a Church of the masses but unfortunately today it is increasingly being seen as the Church of the clergy, the rich and the powerful.
May be we should also reflect on the action of Mother Teresa on being awarded the1979 Nobel Peace Price. After initial reluctance she finally agreed to accept it with the following words:
" But I am grateful to receive (the Nobel) in the name of the hungry, the naked, the homeless, of the crippled, of the blind, of the lepers, of all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared-for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone."
However she refused the reception to honor her probably because she felt her work for God needs no human glorification and reward.
Dr.Chris Anthony
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