The Migrant Workers Centre (MWC) will champion any measures that are taken to protect the welfare of migrant workers here.

Its executive director, Mr Edwin Pang, said the organisation would support the Government in coming down hard on errant employers and agents who abuse workers in any way.

He was speaking yesterday at the launch of a photo exhibition depicting the lives of migrant workers here, as part of International Migrants Day celebrations.

The exhibition, held at NTUC Centre in One Marina Boulevard, will run until the end of this week.

The comments were in response to calls by other migrant welfare organisations for the Government to sign a United Nations (UN) treaty to prevent human trafficking here and punish those involved.

Since its inception in early 2009, the MWC has served as a lifeline for more than 2,700 distressed workers, providing shelter and food.

It also helps workers who have been treated unfairly, especially with regard to salary and compensation claims.

Mr Pang said that the centre advocates government agencies or the authorities coming down hard on employers, agents or repatriation companies, "with the full force of the law if necessary", to protect the rights of workers here.

In a statement issued on International Migrants Day on Sunday, the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics urged the Singapore Government to sign and ratify the UN treaty.

Presently, there are no laws here dealing specifically with human trafficking.

Last week, the Inter-Agency Taskforce on Trafficking in Persons said that the authorities would continue to raise awareness of human-trafficking issues by working with non-governmental organisations, according to news reports.

In August, the task force said it was drafting a National Plan of Action for Singapore to tackle both sex and labour trafficking.

"We are also studying the possibility of future accession to the UN Trafficking In Persons Protocol," it said in a statement then.