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Kuwait: Asian maid forced into prostitution, others commit suicide

On May 21, 2011

Maids in Kuwait do not only suffer from rape and abuse that leads to suicide attempts. Recently, an Asian maid has been locked in a house in Jileeb Al-Sheiokh area and forced into prostitution for four months until she was able to escape and went to file a case in the police station as reported by Al-Qabas Arabic daily newspaper in the 19th of May. The maid said she had escaped from her sponsor's house and wanted to take a cab to her embassy's but the Taxi driver took her to that house where she had to face that horrific fate. The case was registered and the police station said they will be investigating it.

In the same issue, the newspaper said a 28 year old Egyptian man was found dead behind a restaurant in Mahboula area with no marks of violence on his body. Another man, a 34 year old Asian, was also found dead, with no marks of violence, in his room in his sponsor's house who reported the death incident. The causes of death in both cases remain unknown according to the police stations statements to Al-Qabas.

Al-Watan Arabic daily newspaper reported on the 21st of May a suicide attempt by an Ethiopian maid who drank cleaning liquid in Saad Al-Abdullah area. Her sponsor found her and took her immediately to Al-Jahra hospital where she was saved from death. A case was opened and the investigation will proceed when the maid gets well. Al-Watan reported another suicide attempt, this time by an Indonesian maid who threw herself from the second floor in Mangaf area. She broke her left leg and was transferred to Al-Adan hospital where she got investigated on her suicide attempt.

On the 17th of May, the same newspaper reported another horrific incident of an Asian maid who tried to give birth to her fetus on her own in her room. Her sponsoring family did not notice that she was pregnant and she told them that she was very sick and needs to go to the hospital but then she went to her room and tried to deliver the baby herself. She died due to excessive blood loss. The police were called to the incident's location and are now investigating the identity of the fetus's father.