From the Editor: Labour Day 2016 issue

Welcome to the Labour Day 2016 issue of The ASEAN Beat, a publication produced by the ‘Reporting ASEAN’ program!

In this issue, we bring together a diverse mix of features, analyses and video reports around ASEAN and the different facets of labour migration.

This package of stories ranges from how the easier movement of skilled professionals under the ASEAN Community will play out, which countries expect to gain or to be challenged by this new policy, and which professions in which countries will find this incentive attractive.

This issue also zooms out to look at the bigger picture, discussing what ASEAN has unable – or unwilling – to address, such as the issue of unskilled migrant workers in the region.

Many of the pieces featured in this issue were done by print and TV journalists from ASEAN countries who were part of the ‘Reporting ASEAN’ media fellowship programme. They reflect the perspectives of the media and publics in different ASEAN countries about migration and labour, putting together an offering of topics and reporting styles that also reflect the mix of media cultures and environments in the region.

Happy reading, and a work-free Labour Day!

Johanna Son

Editor, The ASEAN Beat