OSCE Centres help train Kazakh and Kyrgyz journalists to report on labour migration

ALMATY, 17 August 2006 - A training course on labour migration for journalists from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan began today in Almaty.

Organized by the OSCE Centres in Almaty and Bishkek, and the Kazakh International Centre for Journalism MediaNet, the three-day event brought together 20 participants.

"As neighbours with a common past and similar cultures, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan experience an active exchange of migrants," said Ambassador Ivar Vikki, Head of the OSCE Centre in Almaty.

"Migration, though a widely spread phenomenon which can be a positive factor in economic and social development, is often misinterpreted and poorly understood. There are prejudices and stereotypes that need to be overcome, and journalists can play a crucial role in this."

Participants at the course will discuss legal and illegal labour migration from Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan, the legislation that regulates migration flows, and ways to report about them.

Experts in the field from the two countries and representatives of international and non-governmental organizations will offer presentations. One of them will be based on an ongoing joint research project by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization which is designed to support Kazakhstan in implementing its labour migration policy.

According to the Kazakhstani Interior Ministry, 11 per cent of those applying to legalize their status under a recent law on legalization of illegal labour migrants from CIS countries were from Kyrgyzstan. The Ministry expects up to 100,000 labour migrants will be registered under the procedure, which will last until the end of the year.