A School Talk to Remember!

by Riyani Sidek

Human migration and trafficking is a really concerning topic as many of us have heard that they are undocumented or forced making them vulnerable to experience greater threat to their lives. At a school talk in JIS and ISB, over 50 students sat down to understand the experiences of these migrants. Led by Nafisa, the school talk was held on 7 October and 14 October 2022 which addressed Irregular Maritime Migration and Human Trafficking Cambodia. 

GAIA’s Research Associates Riyani and Qayyimah presented the topics and expressed that It was a really eye opening experience for themselves and the students as they ventured into several topics such as the human migration challenges and vulnerability of migrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic where many migrants were taken advantage of their desperation to seek for work by local brokers in Cambodia.

The students with an age range between 16 and 18 year olds were interactive as the speakers used several methods to engage students’ participation. Students at JIS scanned the QR code for them to be able to submit their questions and raised their hands to ask the questions directly. Students at ISB were separated into groups of 5 where they were able to discuss the topics amongst themselves, used white boards to give their answers to the questions given and asked questions and answered questions verbally as well. 

It was a great learning experience for the speakers and students to be part of a thought-provoking discussion on the immediate and long-term effects and changes to our horizons and explored the actions we can do so that we can be more accountable to helping those who are facing difficult situations. 

We thank ISB and JIS for the warm welcome and thank the students for the interactive discussions!