By Arjun Naidu Mechanic Devadass Ganesamoorthy was having his lunch break when five or six Ministry of Manpower (MOM) officers raided the workshop in June. “They ask, 'Where permit?' and I give permit.” But although Devadass was a mechanic, he was listed as 'musician' on his work permit. “So they said, 'Eh you musician, what
By Benjamin Wong To the question 'Are you married?', Mohsin Howlander pauses, pursing his lips. “My wife, she die already,” he replies, fighting back tears. “Oh dear, how did that happen?” your TWC2 volunteer asks him. He switches from grief to anger, spitting out the words like a curse: “She die because of my faarker
This senior gentleman is scrutinising the back of Debbie Fordyce's name card. He's probably wondering: What exactly does this woman do? What mischief does she get up to? Meanwhile, she's seated less than two metres away, smiling politely, but silent as a cat on velvet – as the saying goes. The back of the card
Be Bangladeshi worker Akash for a little while -- that's the concept behind the interactive video produced by Nanyang Technological University students Avril and Yanling (lower right inset above) for their final year project. It's a documentary with a twist, taking the viewer through the experiences of a fictional character as he leaves his home
By Xinlin Basir Ullah is a stout man with an easy smile. However, when he came to TWC2 last Tuesday, it was not a smile but a face contorted in pain that we saw. He had a bad toothache in his right jaw which had been troubling him for the past two months. Lately, however,
By Francesca A striking new video of candid conversations between Singapore Management University students and Bangladeshi construction workers has become a YouTube sensation in Singapore. Between its release on March 7, 2012 and the end of the month, more than 37,000 people have viewed the seven-minute student film, “Unsung – The Invisible Workforce behind this
By Spiegel In Bangladesh, men who have returned from labours in distant Singapore often regale their young compatriots with glowing tales of a city of abundant opportunity, where hard work finds good reward. But for many seeking a better living and lured by the promise of this distant island nation, the reality can fall badly
There were two types of cream cake and several slabs of banana cake By Francesca A crush of more than 230 out-of-work migrant labourers crowded in and around Isthana Restaurant in Little India Thursday night, March 15, 2012, to celebrate the fourth anniversary of Transient Workers Count Too's Cuff Road Project. The programme
Unlike other stories at this site, 29-year-old Madasamy Muniyandi's story is not one of grievous injustice. He has no major beef with his employer though he suffered a bad accident that has left him with a permanent impairment. But he's tired of waiting. The process is very slow. As an only son, his mother is
By Rahul Advani Even before the start of my interview with Al Amin Kuddus, 24, he looked uncomfortable. “I have a boil under my arm” he tells me. “The pain is so strong I cannot even sleep”. As I ask him to lift his arm, he winces, hissing deeply at the pain. How he developed
