Below are excerpts from Joey’s experiences. See his full post here.

I’d like to share a story that’s not really easy to tell and which has something to do with what Sari wrote in the previous post. Not surprisingly since I can’t seem to shut up about it, most of my friends know that I spent 2 months in Madagascar last summer.

[...]

Androka and Antsikoroke – a village closer to Ambohibola – were part of the villages that have seen women leave to work in Lebanon and I had the fortune, or rather misfortune, to find out that two of these women are now missing. The Androka woman was supposed to return home 3 years ago and the Antsikoroke woman was supposed to return home 12 years ago. Shocked yet? Let me continue, the Androka woman stopped sending money home at one point for no known reason and the Antsikoroke never even contacted her family. Now you might think I’m jumping to conclusions here by claiming that both women are probably enslaved or dead but what if I told you that 17 Malagasy maids died in Lebanon last year? What if I told you that foreign domestic workers are not covered by Lebanon’s labor laws?

We are basically telling them that they may be miserable enough to leave their country in search of money to feed their families and come to ours only to expect to be treated as sub-humans.

Back to Madagascar. It took me a few seconds to hit rock bottom when I was talking to an elderly man in Androka. He was the woman’s grandfather and he stopped talking when I told him where I’m from. He couldn’t look me in the eyes. He lowered his head and went back inside his house. Mr Cheban, our translator, didn’t know what to say as I stood there blank-faced. He tried to comfort me – we talked about women coming to Lebanon as maids the day before – but couldn’t find the words. I repeat, HE tried to comfort ME. It was my fellow citizens who have caused this suffering, and it was one of that woman’s fellow citizens who was trying to comfort me. I uttered no more words that day.

[...]

I couldn’t describe the feeling of shame and disgust that I had felt at that moment towards my so-called fellow citizens of Lebanon. I know we Lebanese are used to complaining about everything. We even have “neswen el 7ay” (women of the neighborhood) who do it on a daily basis. But that was different. I wasn’t even complaining. I simply did not know what to say. I couldn’t justify it in any way, I was simply part of a gigantic crime that involves a few millions of people. The situation that foreign workers have to endure in Lebanon may be better in some cases than the slaves of Dubai – I’ve had the opportunity to see them as well – who are left with cleaning the floor behind the rich shoppers and driving them around, but we can simply give no excuses.

[...]

I’ll leave you with a relatively happy thought:

I can’t describe how warm I felt when I was around these people. I know that my fellow volunteer, roommate and good friend Eirik from Norway could back me up on this. We spent hours talking about how unusually secure and comfortable we were around these people. Despite barely speaking more than a few sentences in each other’s native languages, we were still able to bond quite well. I left that place with warm goodbyes and “come back soon” wishes and I sure as hell plan on going back. The differences that every culture exhibits is dwarfed by the universal similarities that we all share despite how convinced we are of the uniqueness of our own culture. The pathetic titles we give to each other all serve social roles and have no actual substances independent of context. The reason why Malagasy, Sri Lankas, Ethiopians, Filipinos and others come to Lebanon for work is simply because they don’t have enough cash in their pockets. That’s it. You have nothing whatsoever that makes you more special. You’re simply luckier. You got the easier role within our globalized world. Give it some thought and stop believing that sad lie that you were somehow chosen.

Click here to continue reading Joey’s piece.

Mark was first diagnosed with minimal pulmonary TB in September 2008. He stopped working immediately and underwent six months of cumulative treatment in addition to preventative care. Once definitively cured, he resumed search for work overseas.

When an Emrati company selected him for a temporary position, Mark informed the employers of his recent history with TB. The employers provided Mark with written consent to clear him for his departing medical check-ups, assuring him that old TB presented no issues. His visa was approved after lengthy and nerve-wracking processing, allowing him to work in the UAE from 2009 to 2010. After his contract with the company ended, he returned to the Phillipines in search of more overseas work. But after securing a position with another Emirates-based firm, he faced an obstacle he thought he had already overcome:

…this time I did not inform them about my TB history, it never crossed my mind that this is going to be an issue again since I’ve previously worked in UAE.  But when I  took my pre-departure medical check-up,  the clinic stamped me as “UNFIT”.

Mark urged the recruitment agency to advocate on his behalf, knowing that his own protestations wold have no sway with the GCC accredited clinics (GAMCA). In particular, he requested that the agency inform his future employer of the complication, so that the company could intervene and loan their influence. But for three weeks, the agency proved apathetic to Mark’s pleas, refusing to confirm any contact with his would-be employer.

Provided with no alternative, Mark continued his search for work. Again, the excessive barriers imposed by antiquated TB policies prevented him from obtaining employment for which he was entirely qualified:

Through a local recruiting agency I received an invitation to attend their client’s final interview, but when I informed the agency about my lung scar they immediately rejected my application. That was the end of it.

Mark faced an impossible predicament; he could not find any publicly available information regarding the TB policies, and recruitment agencies were unwilling to help him navigate or even understand the enigmatic practices strangling his livelihood. From his own experiences, the TB policies appeared sporadically enforced, consequently providing him with no indication of who he should contact or what action he could take. The disorienting weight of his situation hit him with full force during his last employment opportunity in April 2011:

I was very determined to inform them about my TB history and convince them that it’s possible for me to work in UAE. I was selected again, but during the interview, I [could] not tell them about my lung scar, I was so afraid to lose this opportunity again that the words just wouldn’t come out. I really tried, but ultimately, I failed to tell them. And so upon pre-departure medical check-up I was stamped as “UNFIT”. 

Eventually, Mark obtained a more straight forward understanding of the law when the Abu Dhabi Health Authority released their ‘Visa Screening Standards’ online. With bleak finality, Mark realized that he could no longer work in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, or Qatar – which enforce similar, and perhaps even stricter, TB policies. But with the law’s text now confronting him in black and white, Mark’s battle against the extreme practices are reinvigorated:

I’ve lost something very important to me and I don’t have one good [or] sensible reason why. It’s hell to live with this, especially at these difficult times…This policy is inhuman, senseless, and even potentially dangerous to these GCC states.

TB is an ancient disease, but it’s exactly this kind of attitude by some policy makers that makes it still a problem to this day and age. On a broader outlook, how sure are these policy makers that not one, amongst the millions of migrant workers across the Middle East is hiding this disease because of fear of deportation? There is cure, medicines which are easily available and practically inexpensive, so why is there a need to push another human being into fear and despair?

Mark voices many of the same arguments against the policy that doctors at the 2010 InnovoHealth conference expressed; deportations and lifetime bans instill fear in migrants with potential TB symptoms, reducing their likelihood of reporting the disease. The policy consequently introduces even more risk to transient and local Gulf populations. Even if its benefits did outweigh the serious deficiencies, such extreme solutions are unnecessary; Mark points out the United States’ approach to TB, which provides its population with more reliable health protections without imposing unnecessary stress on migrants. For example, foreigners with TB may apply for a waiver to enter the country legally, and can also re-apply for a visa once cured. TB control programs specifically list “…safeguard[ing] the confidentiality and civil liberties of persons who have TB, and…protect[ing] them from unlawful discrimination because of their disease,” among their primary objectives. The UK’s TB policy is similarly tolerant.

Like Yanita and other migrants facing TB discrimination, Mark aims to lobby organizations such as the WHO to pressure GCC states into modifying their laws. With the success of alternative, less stringent measures in the US and the UK – who also host large migrant populations – there is hope that Gulf countries can be swayed to implement more efficient policies that improve preventative TB measures while preserving the liberties and livelihoods of their migrant populations.

Below is an interview with Alex Shams, a founder and current public relations coordinator of MWTF. Alex has been a key organizer with the force since its inception and continues to advocate on its behalf from his residence in the United States. Visit the MWTF blog to track their incredible efforts and find out how you, too, can take action.

What was your motivation to start the MW Task Force? Can you tell us about the team you’ve assembled?

Just under a year ago a few of us came into contact with Aimee, a Malagasy migrant worker who is active in defending the human rights of migrant workers in Lebanon. Her work is focused around direct social work and makes use of her access and intimate knowledge of the situation facing migrant workers, and particularly migrant domestic workers, in this country.

We began at this point thinking- how can we advance and support her work and the work of people like her, and how can we involve the many people- both Lebanese and foreigners- who are passionate about this human rights crisis? We were not an NGO and we were all engaged in either our jobs or our studies, so we understood from the beginning that whatever we did had to be based on a volunteer collective. After a few planning meetings, we decided to focus on language classes for migrant workers in Lebanon, as most Lebanese speak multiple languages and this is something that can be shared between individuals. Also, many migrant workers in Lebanon face many hurdles because of their limited language abilities. And so our first project was to set up weekly language classes.

Can you tell us more about your language project, and how we and others can help?

We offer Arabic, English, and French classes to migrant workers for free every Sunday. These classes have been going on for about 9 months now, and have attracted over 100 students and about 50 teachers (though only about a fifth of students and teachers attend every week). Both students and teachers are volunteers, a fact necessitated by the fact that very few migrant domestic workers in Lebanon receive one day off a week, and thus cannot attend regularly. Despite this, the classes have been very successful. In addition, for the classes we have developed and continue to develop a curriculum that is suitable to the needs and specific circumstances of migrant domestic workers in Lebanon.

The biggest need for us is always teachers! We always need more volunteers to come and teach languages for our classes because we always have extremely eager and committed students. Right now the classes are extremely personalized- about 4-5 students per teacher- and we hope to retain this level. Please contact us if you are in Lebanon and are free for 2 hours on Sundays!

What are the toughest challenges you face with your campaign and advocacy work?

The biggest issue we face in our advocacy is ignorance about the rights of migrant workers. Many people seem to consider these workers less than human in some way and do not understand that as workers they are entitled to the same rights that a Lebanese worker expects to receive. Even very educated people often do not recognize locking a worker in the house as imprisonment or having her work 7 days a week as slavery, and so often people do not understand why we seek to work with migrant workers.

We are the first volunteer collective in Lebanon focused on this issue, and so our very work raises awareness to the moral crisis Lebanon faces because of its horrific treatment of migrant workers. There are some excellent organizations working on improving the legal situation of migrant domestic workers; as volunteers, however, we are continuing to struggle to enact grassroots change in people’s mentalities while we work with migrant workers to develop the skills needed to defend their rights. Through fundraising and cultural events as well as through video awareness campaigns

Is this project currently funded or do you rely primarily on donations? Do you have any regional or international partners?

We are volunteers and we have absolutely no funding. All money we raise goes directly to the causes we serve; whether this be financially supporting human rights workers from within the migrant communities or making copies of lessons for students in our language classes.

I encourage everyone in whatever country they may be to start similar volunteer collectives. A group of us with little experience began this project of our own volition and based on our own passions and with no money, so I hope people elsewhere will follow this example and skill sharing between migrant workers and people across the region will grow!

Zegeye’s approach humanizes the horrific experiences of domestic workers, transforming disenfranchised migrants from mere statistics into individuals who face remarkably relatable daily challenges. The characters in her film embody the totality of Ethiopian experiences in Lebanon, offering Ethiopians and Lebanese alike a new, comprehensive understanding of female migrant workers.

Rahel’s own struggles as a domestic servant inspired “Beirut,” which she wrote and filmed herself over a nine year period. She tells us more about herself and her film in our interview below. Special thanks to Alex from the Migrant Worker’s Task Force for introducing Migrant-Rights to Rahel.

Could you please briefly introduce yourself to the audience of Migrant-Rights.org?

My name is Rahel Zegeye, I am almost 32 years old. I was born in Ethopia, in a village called Faransay.

I studied Drama with the Save Your Generation group -a group fighting against the spreading of HIV-and also through participating in plays on the Ethiopian television, but this had to stop when I came to Lebanon to start working and helping hence my family financially. I have been in Lebanon for 10 years now.

What was your childhood like?

I had a normal childhood, but a poor one, as both my parents were unemployed. I grew in a big family with five sisters and four brothers; I was the fifth to come.

How did you manage to become a film maker and at the same time an activist for migrant workers in Lebanon? What was your driving power?

I started writing the script at night, seven years ago, and started filming only on Sundays -my days off- and this is why the filming took two years. I was driven by all the true stories I have witnessed, and still witnessing.

What has been your greatest challenge?

My biggest challenge is the lack of support from my own embassy. I tried showing the movie twice, to the old and the new responsibles, but with no reply whatsoever from their part.

Who is your film targeting?

The Ethiopian community. I want to teach them about what happens in Lebanon, and not teach them how to clean and mop. They need to be more aware of what is waiting for them when they decide to leave their countries. I want them to be careful. I am not addressing the Lebanese community, nor do I want to; no one listens anyway, and I am not here to change them.

Do you hear about migrant worker struggles in the Gulf region? If so, what is your typical resource for such news?

Rarely, if something huge is happening, I would hear about it on the TV. Always though, the bad actions of migrant workers are exaggerated, and the abuse the migrant workers face is not so publicized.

What are the solutions, in your opinion, to end migrant worker suffering? What are the roles of NGOs, online media and the workers themselves?

The NGOs and such should lobby within governments to impose strict laws. Many times, recruiting agencies bring people from Ethiopia through indirect routes (through Sudan, Yemen and such) and that has many consequences on them like sickness, rape and pregnancy. The Middle Eastern and Ethiopian governments should not issue visas to anyone, unless they know they are heading directly from Ethiopia to the other country. The Ethiopian government should also follow up on everyone leaving.

This work is not easy, and to accomplish that, working NGOs should have at least two people from each of the countries where Migrant Workers come from, to help them keep track of all of what is happening to the workers and to ensure all is going well.

What is the largest obstacle for migrant workers? The ignorance, absence of their home countries’ presence, lack of effective laws, their sponsors and sponsorship system, recruiting agencies, or the disinterest of local governments and societies?

All of the above, sadly, have a hand in the misery of migrant workers. They often come, with no knowledge of Arabic nor English, being sold from an employer to another by the recruiting offices. The recruiting offices could not care less about the workers, and only care about making profit over our backs.

Many employers treat their employees very badly, denying them from their basic rights of salary, rest and days off. The embassy, to top it all, turns a blind eye to the community. They should keep track of all the workers and keep checking regularly -every six months maybe- on them, making sure they are well treated and getting paid.

Another big problem, is that when a Consulate is present instead of an embassy (like in the case of the Ethiopian consulate in Lebanon,) they keep running away from their responsibilities, under the pretext that they do not have such or such authority as a Consulate, and cannot do anything about anything.

What is the film’s status now? We know of some of the circumstances involved with the film’s distribution, could you tell us more about this issue? And is it available to buy/watch online?

We will soon start translating the movie “Beirut” into English, for it to hit a wider public. I am thinking of selling the movie soon, maybe it will have a chance in better publicity. I am starting on a new film now, working still on the script.

Who has inspired you in your life and influenced your work?

My dad has been a great influence and a role model in my life, he is a strong good-hearted man who has taught me the meaning of life and how to be kind to others. He has helped me a lot with my script, correcting and editing.

As for a famous character, I see Oprah as my role model, and I wish I can be an influential person like her. She is a very rich woman who wouldn’t think twice before helping the people in need

Ghimire interviewed the Saudi envoy in Kathmandu Dr. Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Nepal Dr Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Busairi has just informed Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal (in July 2011) that his government is planning to open its embassy in Nepal. More than five hundred thousand Nepali migrant workers are employed in Saudi Arabia. Nepali workers have had been facing difficulties to access the largest labor market in the Gulf region in absence of Saudi embassy in Nepal. Direct air flights between Nepal and Saudi Arabia is also the need of the hour.

Likewise, oil-rich Saudi regime is willing to invest in hydropower, tourism and some other sectors in Nepal. Ambassador Bushahiri says that his government is highly impressed with the performance of Nepali migrant workers and has, therefore, urged the authorities in Kathmandu to supply more workers, especially the skilled ones. It is shocking to learn that with hundreds of thousands of Nepalese in Saudi Arabia, there isn’t even an embassy in place yet. Read the whole text for more details.

According to media reports, Saudi Arabia is planning to open its embassy in Nepal, shortly. When do you expect to open it?

Saudi ambassador: Yes, we are planning to open the embassy. But, we have not finalized the date, yet.

Can you suggest a tentative timeframe?

Saudi ambassador: I cannot make predictions. Nonetheless, we have already decided to open our embassy here.

How many Nepali migrant workers are stationed in Saudi Arabia as per your data?

Saudi ambassador: Currently, there are more than five hundred thousand Nepali migrants working in Saudi Arabia.

Is there any plan in the pipeline to resume direct air flights between Nepal and Saudi Arabia?

Saudi ambassador: Saudi aircrafts used to land in Kathmandu many years back. However, if I am not mistaken, the flights were discontinued to due some technical problems here. This time around, a few Nepali ministers have informed me that the Saudi aircrafts can now land in Nepal. Hence, I’ll take up this issue with our government.

How do you evaluate Nepali migrant workers in Saudi Arabia?

Saudi ambassador: The very reason I am here to request the Nepali official to supply more Nepali workers is that we are impressed with their performance. These days, economic activities have surged in the Saudi Arabia, and a lot of construction work is going on.

What types of workers are on high demand in your country?

Saudi ambassador: Since the Nepali workers are sincere and industrious, there is demand for all types of workers. However, we need a lot of skilled manpower besides the labors. We need more of engineers, doctors, nurses, plumbers, electricians, domestic helpers (maids). Hence, we have urged the Nepali officers to supply trained manpower. Such skilled manpower is in our interest and they, too, stand to benefit from good wage we offer.

Do you have any suggestions to ensure safe and systematic migration of Nepali workers to Saudi Arabia?

Saudi ambassador: Besides from trained and skilled manpower, the ordinary workers need to get appropriate pre-departure orientation. For instance, they need to have sound knowledge of the Saudi law before they land in Riyadh. This way, they won’t be vulnerable to legal prosecution. I urge all the manning agents to send the workers only after imparting such orientation.

I also hear complaints that the Nepali workers are duped and that they receive paltry wage in Saudi Arabia. I urge the officials from the umbrella bodies of the foreign employment entrepreneurs associations to hold direct talks with the Saudi official and employers to address the issue.

A lot of Nepali migrant workers have had been cheated, exploited and victimized by their Saudi employers. What are the measures being adopted by the Saudi authorities for the welfare of the migrant workers?

Saudi ambassador: If any migrant worker is exploited by their Saudi employers than he or she should directly approach a department under our Labour Ministry to lodge the complaint. In Saudi law, all people, including the Saudi employer and the migrant workers are equal. If we find out that any company is underpaying, not paying or exploiting the workers in any form then we will initiate action against that company. Still, many workers may not be aware about such provisions. That is why I am laying emphasis on pre-departure orientation and proper training.

You are in Nepal for quite some days now. How do you find it?

Saudi ambassador: I have extremely fond of Nepal. I was here two years back. In fact, I had toured the country 20 years ago as a young tourist. When I am in Nepal, I feel at home. The other good thing about the country is its religious and social harmony. I hear that the Hindus, Christians, Muslims and people of other faiths live harmoniously and that they have never fought with each other. This is a great quality. I also pray for Nepal’s peace and prosperity.

M-R: Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
Our names are Dima, Manuella and Tala. We go to International College (school) in Ras Beirut, Lebanon. We are 11/12 years old.

M-R: Could you tell us a little bit about the project you did for school about human rights of housemaids in Lebanon?
Last year in school, we had an exhibition, and we could pick our topic freely. All three of us were interested in making our project revolve around human rights, more specifically, maid rights. We interviewed maids outside of our school, collected information from the computer (mostly from this site). And from our results we noticed the lack of care for the maids and how much they were missing out on their rights.

M-R: Why did you pick this subject for your project?

We picked this topic because it was different… Unique. We thought that it was an uncommon topic that people were not paying attention to. We wanted to open their eyes to the fact that all of us need to have equal rights… But no one really cares about the rights of the maids.

M-R: What was the reaction at school to your project? What do your parents think about it?

We noticed that people at school enjoyed our project and were interested in it. When they asked us what our project was about, and we told them, we felt that they always had an enthusiastic look on their face to find out what kind of research we had done. Our parents were very happy that we took interest in a topic like this, and tried to help out on other peoples’ rights. They were open to help us with whatever they knew, and whatever they had noticed about the rights of maids.

M-R: Why do you think so many maids are abused in Lebanon?
We think that maids are abused in Lebanon because of racism and lack of care. We also think that when someone has a maid in their house, they consider him/her as THEIR maid, and they think that they can do whatever they want with him/her.

M-R: What can Lebanese people do to improve the conditions of migrant domestic workers in their country?

People in Lebanon can take action to make a law against abusing maids and guaranteeing their rights. They can also simply not abuse the maids and respect their rights. If everybody cared for the rights of maids, no maid would be abused. Also, people can make other people more aware of how the maids may feel, and that MAY impact them a bit (or a lot).

M-R: Do you think many people in Lebanon are aware of this issue? What would you like people in Lebanon to know about the rights of migrant domestic workers?

We don’t think that many people in Lebanon are aware of this issue because many maids are being abused (based on our research). We would like people to know that the maids are not their slaves, and there is never any reason to be racist. They should know how the maids feel, and they should picture themselves in the maids’ shoes.

M-R: Is there anything else that you would like to add?
To add, the maids’ abuses are so bad that some maids are committing suicide (which we know from this website), which means that people not only need to be aware, but they need to TAKE ACTION TO MAKE EVERYTHING OKAY.

Dr. Hanieh, a lecturer in Development Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, described how the Saudi working class that has filled up most of the positions in the oil sector was gradually replaced with temporary workers in the 1960s and 1970s due to radicalization of the Saudi working class, which conducted several strikes, some of them against the control of a US firm (Aramco) over the Saudi oil. The strikes and protests were repressed and by the 1970s, 75% of the workers were Arab migrants. Those migrants, mostly Palestinians and Yemeni citizens were then themselves replaced in the 1980s and 1990s by South-Asian migrants who now constitute the majority of the workforce in the Gulf. Dr. Hanieh then goes on to discuss the living and working conditions of migrant workers in the Gulf today: passport confiscation, inability to strike, abuse and many occurrence of suicides.

Read here the full transcript of the interview.

The first report includes interviews with families of deceased Filipino domestic workers. It includes an interview with family members of an abused maid in Jordan who was not given her salary and forbidden to contact her family for two years. Her autopsy report ruled that she died of natural causes. Another interview is with family members of Romilyn Eroy-Ybañez, who was brutally murdered in her sponsor’s house in Saudi Arabia this September.

The second report discusses the difficulties the Philippine government is having when trying to protect its workers overseas. The report mentions that Filipino workers are willing to take the huge risk of being abused and killed in the Middle East in order to provide for their families back home.

Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?

My name is Matthew Cassel, I am a photographer and journalist from Chicago currently living in Beirut.

What prompted you to begin this project of photographing migrant domestic workers in Lebanon?

I began working on this issue after Theresa Seda, a 28-year-old domestic worker and mother of three from the Philippines, fell to her death from the seventh floor balcony of her employer’s home across the street from my home in Beirut.

Soon after I was approached by KAFA (Enough) Violence and Exploitation, a Lebanese NGO that is doing research and advocacy work on the issue of violence against women in Lebanon, which includes migrant domestic workers. We wanted to put together a photo project that showed the lives and culture of these women to accompany KAFA’s important research.

The title of your work is “Unseen Lives”. Why do you think Lebanese society is generally unaware of the lives of expatriate domestic workers?

It’s not only Lebanese society that is unaware of the lives of workers, whether they be foreigners or locals. Around the world, especially in my native country the US, workers often go unnoticed and unappreciated for their importance in society. Do most shoppers go to the grocery store and think about who makes the various products or who harvests and delivers fruits and vegetables? And even when we see workers every day like those working construction or collecting garbage, how often do most stop and think about that worker’s story? I would say “unseen lives” is a universal term to describe workers around the world who are rarely given a voice by most mainstream media and popular culture.

However, the situation is a bit different in a country like Lebanon where more and more migrants are coming in search of work and are increasingly being denied even the most basic rights. The situation is more dire here than other places, especially considering the increasing number of domestic workers who have died in recent years, and I think it’s an issue that should spark outrage and force people to act immediately.

Some of the photographs from the essay were shot inside the homes the maids worked in and documented their daily routine. What are you observations about their working and living conditions? Do you think those conditions may differ in other homes?

Conditions differ from home to home. But in my opinion, hiring a woman to live and work inside your home leaving her with no separation between her personal and work life is enough to be considered exploitation and mistreatment. In every home where women both work and live, they are “at work” 24/7 (there is even a new activist group called 24/7 that organizes to support domestic workers). They can be woken up in the middle of the night to take care of a sick child or leaky faucet. Never, except for those who are actually allowed a day off, are they “off the clock” and away from their work. And usually a day off means a few hour break on Sunday or other day when most women have to spend that time constantly checking the clock so they don’t violate their curfew and upset their employers. Since workers have little to no protection, the few rights they might have are entirely at the whim of the employer and can be taken away at any second. The employer can give them additional work, not allow them a day off, and take advantage of them in other ways. Therefore, many workers who I met share a sense of not wanting to upset their employer, or, “keep madame happy” as I heard some women say.

In the few homes where I photographed, women were treated well and were happy with their jobs. As I say in the project’s statement, this body of photographs in no way accurately portrays the lives of most domestic workers in this country. Those who I could photograph had a “better” situation than most in the sense that they were able to leave their employers’ homes or their employers were comfortable asking their domestic workers if I could photograph them in the work place. Obviously, an employer who mistreats or abuses their worker wouldn’t want to allow an American photographer in to expose that situation. But I know that such situations do exist and that they are not rare. Many women who have been here for a few years or more have had more than one employer, and they described to me how either they or other workers who they know have faced or are currently facing abuse and mistreatment from their employers. It’s frightening to hear these stories knowing that there is very little that can be done in most cases.

Theresa Seda was an example of this. In the two months that she worked in Lebanon, she was never able to leave the home unless it was to take care of her employer’s kids when the family went out. She was essentially a prisoner in her employer’s home although she committed no crime. And unfortunately, many women face a similar situation.

So, while the conditions may differ slightly from home to home, in general the system of hiring foreign women as domestic workers is broken and needs to be fixed.

Were you able to communicate with some of the maids? What did they tell you about working conditions? What are their perceptions of Lebanese society?

I was able to communicate with many different women from every country that domestic workers in Lebanon come from. And I found that very few women, a definite minority, had positive views of Lebanese society. The overwhelming majority who I spoke with — and mind you these are the workers who have better situations — have become used to living and working in this society and are very critical of the way they’re treated by Lebanese civilians and authorities. Unless a woman has or had an especially good relationship with her employers, it’s rare that she would recall stories of when she felt she had a Lebanese friend or someone she felt she could trust. This helps explain the tightly knit societies that exist between migrant workers. When they can, women reach out to their other countrywomen who they can speak their native language with, and they’ll even reach out to workers from other countries who they might have trouble communicating with just to form a network and strengthen the worker community. Almost all who I’ve met seem to have the attitude that no Lebanese are going to protect them, so they have to protect themselves.

Was there one scene in particular that made an impression on you during the months of photographing migrant domestic workers?

Obviously, Theresa’s death across the street from my home affected me most. It’s difficult to put into words
the feelings I had as I watched her body lie in the street and under the rain covered only by a white tarp held down by a broken plastic chair, a flower pot, and bits of cement. On the street around her body, people walked by and cars passed, it seemed to be business as usual and was very surreal to witness. But it showed me how little rights these foreign women in Lebanon have, even in death. After that moment I had no choice other than to speak out and take action.

The other scenes that affected me most were the ones that I couldn’t photograph. One worker in particular who is a very active member in the worker community and who has also become a very close friend of mine, told me horrific stories every day about new cases of abuses that she discovered through her networks. There is one woman in particular who comes from the same country as she does and who managed to get in touch with my friend and tell her that she needed help. The woman had only one minute to explain on a pay phone as she walked her employer’s dog near their home.

My friend was able to quickly jot down some details about the home and the surrounding area before she told the other worker to write her testimony detailing her situation and the abuse she faced on a piece of paper that she could come pick up from her later. I went with my friend after her job one day, and we spent hours following the clues until we found the house where the woman worked. As we stood across the street looking at the house it was awful to realize that inside a woman was being abused and there was absolutely nothing we could do about it. We had to leave so that my friend could come back and wait around the corner for the next time the worker left with the dog so she can pick up the note from her.

For my friend, this was something she does on a regular basis. She calls it “note-dropping,” sometimes she picks up notes from trash cans, from under balconies, from the grocery store. The notes are just the first step before she takes them to one of the NGOs to see if a lawyer can get involved and help the abused worker. And even when a lawyer does get involved, it’s far from guaranteed that the abused worker can be rescued from her employer.

Seeing the commitment that my friend and so many other workers in Lebanon have to their community left the biggest impression on me. It’s really been an honor for me to get to know people who have no money, no rights, no free time, yet still somehow manage to organize themselves and struggle for justice.

What would you like our readers to know about migrant domestic workers in Lebanon?

I wish that everyone would get to know these women and listen to them talk about their lives, their families, their homes and everything else that they’ve had to leave behind in search of work. Their struggle is incredible and it’s far from over, they deserve our respect and support.

Unseen Lives: Migrant Domestic Workers in Lebanon – Images by Matthew Cassel