Irene is appealing against her conviction on a charge of publishing false news.
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KUALA LUMPUR: She puts the "tenaga" in Tenaganita and should perhaps be known as "Iron" rather than Irene.
Dr Irene Fernandez, director and co-founder of Tenaganita, is fuelled by an unwavering passion and steely determination to uphold the rights of migrant workers and abused women in the country.
In spite of tremendous barriers, including a conviction in 2003 on charges of maliciously publishing false news and the resulting threat of a year's prison sentence, Irene is soldiering on with those whose rights she is determined to uphold. Her appeal on the sentence is still pending.
Seemingly without breaking her stride, just two years after her conviction, Irene was once again drawing the ire of the authorities by highlighting and condemning controversial plans by the government to deport more than a million foreign migrants.
Q: Tell us about your youth.
A: I was born in 1946 in Sungai Petani, Kedah. My childhood was fantastic, yet challenging, as I was the only daughter in the family.
As for my early education, I got my diploma in teaching in 1968 from the Teacher Training College in Bukit Nanas. I had the opportunity to teach English for a while at my alma mater, Father Barre Convent School, before quitting and enrolling for social work at Young Christian Workers Movement.
When I was 23 years old, I had my first trip to countries thousands of miles away. I was hardheaded back then and was determined to go to countries where I was needed. With the movement, I travelled to places like Lebanon and Brussels.
I received my honorary doctorate from VRI University of Amsterdam in social medicine in 2002.
Q: Tell us about your family
A: I am married to Joseph Paul, 61, who is a management consultant. I have three children: Tania Jo, 27, an event management executive, Camberra Jose, 26, an engineer in oil and gas and Katrina Jorene, 23, a psychologist. We also have an eight-year-old Shih Tzu dog named Sheera. She is very much a part of the family.
Q: How did your career evolve?
A: I was with the Malaysian Young Christian Workers movement between 1972 and 1975. In 1976, I enrolled in the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) which led me to initiate consumer education programmes such as consumer clubs for secondary school children to teach them about basic needs and safety, and protection of the environment.
My involvement in raising awareness of violence against women began in 1986 when I led campaigns to stop the despicable act. Various women's groups mushroomed as a result of these campaigns. One was the All Women's Action Society, which I was president for five years.
In 1991, I founded the Tenaganita organisation, which I still head, and in 1992, I became the chairperson of the Pesticide Action Network, working for the elimination of pesticides and developing sustainable agriculture.
Q: Tell us a bit about Tenaganita.
A: It's an organisation that champions the rights of immigrant workers, the oppressed and the poor in Malaysia, especially women. We also engage in anti-trafficking campaigns, and campaigns which raise awareness of violence against women. the welfare of refugees, especially women, and we help provide shelter to the needy. We are also highly committed to reducing the use of toxic pesticide in the agrochemical industry.
Q: What is the situation of foreign labourers in our country?
A: They are marginalised. The term I use to describe them is "human commodity". Migrant workers are recruited by recruiting companies in their countries and then sold to agencies with the promise of jobs in this country. These agencies make RM500 to RM1,000 per head. Many of these migrant workers have been left in the lurch when they arrived to work in this country. They are either left to fend for themselves or wait for the authorities to pick them up for deportation. These migrants gave up their savings and properties to the agency in the hope of finding greener pastures in Malaysia.
For those who are lucky to have a decent job here, they are deprived of the right to marriage or have a relationship with locals. Some of them stay in dilapidated hostels and they have no healthcare benefits.
Q: What about the problem of human trafficking, and are Malaysians involved?
A: Yes. Our Malaysian women have been exported to international destinations as part of the flesh trade. They have usually been duped, or even sold off by errant individuals such as husband or boyfriends who owed money to loan sharks.
I've come across many cases of Sabahan girls working in the flesh trade in Singapore, as they have been duped by recruitment agencies with the promise of high-paying jobs.
All this while, we thought it only happened to citizens of other countries, but in fact, we also face the same predicament.
Many of our Malay and Chinese women are becoming sex workers in Taiwan, Toronto, London and European countries due to debts to Ah Long.
There is a flaw in the enforcement system somewhere that allows this to happen, and I am sure that corruption is involved.
We need to have proper governance to fight corruption. The steps taken by the government and the Anti-Corruption Agency recently on checking government officials for bribes are good, but they are still not enough. Questioning and apprehending a few people would not do much, as we need to reform the system completely.
Q: What are your suggestions on curbing the problem?
A: We are asking the goverment to come out with a comprehensive recruitment and migrant policy. We also wish that the rights of workers who have been mistreated and are currently fighting their cases in the labour court are upheld. They should be given permission to stay in Malaysia and work while the case is being heard.
We also want the Immigration Department to take stern action against errant employers who have abused migrant workers and deprived them of their rights. We also hope that the recruitment of foreign labour is shifted to the Human Resource Ministry, away from the Home Ministry.
Q: You have been given international awards for your work, but have you been similarly recognised in your own country?
A: I don't ask for awards. The only thing I wish for is that my fight is recognised and there is change in government policy and the overall system. However, I can see that with the current political climate now, things are changing.
There have been too many restrictions faced by agencies which fight for humanitarian rights and they have consequently lost credibility, such as Suhakam.
Q: What has been the biggest controversy in your career?
A: The furore that erupted after we published our report on the living conditions of migrant workers in Malaysia in 1995. This led to my arrest a year later on charges that I had "maliciously published false news."
Q: Your appeal on the one-year jail sentence is still pending in court. How has the case affected your life?
A: It has taken a toll on me and my family. However, it has made me and Tenaganita a stronger group which fights strongly for equality. Our next agenda will be to ensure that whistle-blowers in government agencies are protected at all cost.
Q: What belief do you dearly hold to in life?
A: I am a strong believer that life is a journey and you have to brace yourself for hardships, especially in unchartered territory. I also believe that a single person's value is worth more than all the gold you can own.
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