They said Mode-4 of GATS, a part of World Trade Organisation, allows the movement of only skilled workers which contradicts the UN Convention on protecting the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families and violates the interests of the least developed countries (LDCs).

The media campaign was organised by Welfare Association of Repatriated Bangladeshi Employees (Warbe) at Dhaka Reporters Unity Auditorium to mark the Enforcement Day of UN Convention on Migrant Workers which is being observed since July 1, 1990.

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and Migrant Forum Asia (MFA) assisted the Warbe to organise the campaign participated by Refugee and Migratory Movement Research Unit (RMMRU) of Dhaka University and Bangladesh Obhibashi Mahila Sramik Association (BOMSA).

"The other modes of GATS are fully in favour of the trades and services of the developed countries, but the movement of semiskilled and unskilled migrant workers, who are the major source of income of the LDCs, has been indiscriminately violated by Mode-4," said Warbe Chairman Syed Saiful Haque.

The movement of capitals, products and services has been made free as part of globalisation process, but the movement of labour force to the developed countries is gradually being made stricter imposing various conditions, he added.

The developed countries are also hindering the export of products of LDCs by imposing conditions on their standard and environment, he observed.

"Modernisation of service sector is a vital factor in increasing the GDP of a country," Saiful Haque said, adding that the free movement of Bangladeshi labours could also contribute to the increase of export in service sector.

The migrant workers of Bangladesh sent remittance of US$ 3.5 billion in 2004, which is double of the total foreign loan and grant during the period, and 48.5 percent of the total export earnings, he noted.

Warbe Vice-chairman Masud Parvez demanded of the government to ratify the UN Convention on migrant workers and frame a national migration policy in a bid to negotiate free movement of labour forces at national, regional and international level.

He also urged the government to uphold the rights of the migrant workers by providing legal and logistic support, fully activating the Bangladeshi missions abroad, simplifying the migration process, and rehabilitating the repatriated workers.

The migrant workers who are cheated by recruiting agencies or intermediaries should be given more legal aid so that they themselves can go to the court for legal action, he said.

Under the Migration Ordinance 1990, a cheated worker has to complain to the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training before going to the court. "This system does not work properly for bureaucratic tangle," he added.

IOM National Programme Officer Nurul Islam Mollah, Bomsa General Secretary Sheikh Romana, and relatives of those who died in the Mediterranean tragedy were present at the media campaign.