Empowering Women

On March 8, women worldwide will again celebrate International Women’s Day. I enjoy celebrating this occasion, because it is a good reminder that we women are precious to God.

International Women’s Day is a reminder to us to continue empowering the vulnerable women who live all around us. One such group in our midst are migrant domestic workers, who are mostly overlooked by our society.

Our Centre for Migrant Domestic Workers (CMDW) collaborates with AIDS Concern, and last year, we saw how blessed many of our MDW sisters were as they learned about ways they could monitor and take good care of their health. It didn’t stop there, because we also partnered with the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) in an event called Equal Health for All. Our aim was to inform our MDW sisters that healthcare options and medical assistance is available to them in Hong Kong.

Recently, over 150 Filipino and Indonesian migrant workers participated in an educational event at Lai Chi Kok Park. First, they learned more about the different ordinances and regulations that are relevant to them in their own circumstances. They were given a free medical check-up, plus a follow up consultation for the ladies if they needed it.

Three groups of migrant workers gave wonderful performances that showcased their culture. Everybody enjoyed the time together, and they have asked for more of the same.

Aside from learning about ways to take good care of their health, we also wanted to make sure that they would be equipped in order to care for others. For that reason, we are launching a series of workshops for our MDW in the upcoming months. The classes will be very practical, and will focus on how to give better care to the elderly. So the migrant domestic workers will learn how to monitor someone’s blood pressure, and how to organist a test for blood sugar levels. They will also learn how to safely push a wheelchair, and how to feed elderly people who cannot feed themselves. We hope that with this teaching, they will be able to give quality service to the people they look after.