In the framework of ‘Internationalisation At Home’, the Department of Languages and Cultures is, on Monday 31 March 2025, organising the event ‘Migrant Labour in Globalised Contexts’.
Migrant labour is a phenomenon that not only characterizes our era of neoliberal globalization, but that has been a socio-economic and political factor and a ‘lived experience’ throughout human history.
In this ‘Internationalisation At Home’ event, a keynote lecture by Prof. dr. Sabine Damir-Geilsdorf (Universität Köln), a specialist in the domain of migration and forced migration, will introduce the participants to the issue of ‘migrant labour’ in historical and contemporary contexts, focusing on social, economic, and political aspects of migration. This keynote lecture will be followed by four workshops. The day will be concluded with a debate, moderated by Mr. Jeroen Zuallaert (Knack).
Programme:
09:00-10:00: Keynote by Sabine Damir-Geilsdorf (Universität Köln): ‘Forms of bonded migrant labour: historical and contemporary aspects’
10:00-10:15: break
10:15-11:15: workshop 1: ‘Ottoman Slavery and the Emergence of a Global Moral Order’ (Christopher Markiewicz, Miglena Dikova-Milanova; invited guest: Ceyda Karamürsel (SOAS))
11:15-12:15: workshop 2: ‘Slavery and Colonialism in the Indian Ocean World’ (Koen Bostoen; invited guest: Martin Bossenbroek)
12:15-13:45: break
13:45: 14:45: workshop 3: ‘The kafala or migrant workers’ sponsorship system in the Arab Gulf States’ (Lisa Franke; invited guest: Sabine Damir-Geilsdorf (Universität Köln))
14:45-15:45: workshop 4: ‘Sexual Labour Trafficking, Sexual Slavery, and Empire in East and Southeast Asia’ (Paride Stortini; invited guest: Nine Fumi Yamamoto-Masson)
15:45-16:00: break
16:00-17:00: roundtable with the keynote speaker and the invited speakers (moderator: Jeroen Zuallaert, Knack)
Final Migrant Poster Final Migrant Programme