Legal aid fund to help migrant workers By Liu Weifeng (China Daily) Updated: 2006-01-20 06:20
China's first legal aid initiative for protecting the rights of migrant
workers was launched yesterday in Beijing with the injection of 1 million yuan
(US$125,000) as preliminary funds.
It was jointly sponsored by China Legal Aid Foundation and All-China Lawyers
Association.
The further funds needed are expected to be raised by the foundation and
governments at various levels.
The initiative will help farmer-turned migrant workers solve major problems,
such as payment defaults and workplace injury compensation claims through legal
channels.
Yu Ning, director of the association, appealed to the lawyer circle across
China to strengthen consciousness and input in helping and protecting the
migrant workers' rights.
Currently, about 140 million migrant workers are seeking temporary jobs in
cities, mostly in sectors of the toughest working conditions such as
construction and factories.
However, many people's hard work has yet to be rewarded with wages due to the
lack of legal support, said Yu.
The launch of the framework was also motivated by the successful experience
of some local lawyer teams in Beijing, Hunan and Anhui provinces.
The only legal aid station in Beijing has received some 2,000 cases from
migrant workers complaining about various kinds of unfair treatments since its
launch in September last year.
Among them, 259 cases have undergone legal procedures, with 85 per cent
relating to payment default.
The station has helped the workers to get back more than 2 million yuan
(US$250,000) of wages owed to them with the intervention of courts.
Tong Lihua, chief lawyer at the station, said the more he worked in the field
the more problems he found.
"As a lawyer, protecting public interest and the vulnerable groups is
essential before taking others into consideration," he said.
His office has become a regular meeting place for the farmers working
all-year-round in Beijing but receiving no pay.
(China Daily 01/20/2006 page3)
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