An event was organised for migrant workers in Singapore by the volunteers who are involved in migrant rights.

“Bikas nath is an immigrant from Bangladesh and has a diploma in engineering, he has worked in a Singapore shipyard for nearly two years”.

“His poem, Keno Probashi? Which means ‘Why Migrant’ posses a question, Nath asks himself when homesickness overcomes him”.

All the 17 competitors who were nervously waiting for their turn on the stage are migrant workers.

The one fifth of the island state population is compromised by the one million work-permit holders.

Most of the workers are from the developing Countries like India, Bangladesh and Philippines, Shipyards construction works or any domestic work holds a very low wage position.

These immigrants come in desperation for income and to full fill their ambitions.

Immigrants are seen only as transients and they are excluded from population figures and policies. The treatment is always harsh upon them.

While female workers have to live in their employer’s home male workers are housed in dormitories which are separated from the country’s permanent residents.

Most of them rack up huge debts to secure their jobs. A Bangladeshi worker pays an average of $8,000 in agents fees, while other domestic workers accept salary deductions for almost a year.

Wiwik Tri Winarsih performing at the event

This is the third year, the Migrant Worker Poetry Competition helps to bridge the gap between Singaporeans and show other dimensions of the workers, who have literally built the city and took care of the city.

The event which was organised by volunteers were involved in migrant rights. The event was staged at National Gallery’s grand auditorium.

Many of the finalists shared their experiences poetically, exploring the themes of loneliness and longing, few others wrote about romance and contemporary issues.

Participants recited in their own native languages with English translations being projected on the screen.

Nur Hidayati broke down to tears as she read her poem which she had composed for her son, whom she had to leave behind.

Rolinda O Espanola a Filipino domestic worker had written a deprivation experienced by a domestic worker who use to get abused by her employers.

"To be a maid in a foreign land, where people look down on us ... But to my family, I am a hero," she wrote.

The worker was restricted from eating sufficient food, to number of times she could brush her teeth.

Ramaswamy Madhavan reads his poem

Ramaswamy Madhavan is a site engineer. He explored offerings and prayer in his poem, and is enthused by the experience.

"It gives us more energy to write," he said.

With the poems still hovering in the hall, there was an anxious wait while the judges conferred. Finally, the winners were announced.

Bikas Nath snatched the first place, who wrote his poems in snatched breaks while supervising in the shipyard, whose evocative imagery caught the judge's attention, with lines like "I want to return to the embrace of what is my own, golden mangoes ripe in the garden, heady fragrance of jackfruits in the afternoon air".

For once, the poet was speechless.

"I'm very proud. But I've lost my words to share my feelings!" he said.

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