Below is a letter we received from the president of the Federation of Kerala Associations in Saudi Arabia (FOKASA). FOKASA is a social organization of Indians working in Saudi Arabia that regularly provides assistance to Indians deprived of their human rights. The letter brings to attention an issue…
Saudi Sponsors Punish Their Workers by Declaring Them as “Runaways”
May 6th, 2010
Abusive employers Saudi Arabia Sponsorship Working conditions
Modern-Day Slavery in Saudi Arabia: Abused and Unpaid Maids “Rented” for Profit
May 5th, 2010
Abusive employers Housemaids Saudi Arabia Slavery
A severely abused Indian maid managed to procure a cellphone and contact the Saudi paper “Arab Times”, sharing her harrowing tale. The maid, “Amina” (not her real name) began working for a family living in Ahsa in the Saudi Eastern Province almost a year ago. Soon after the m...
Four Domestic Workers Commit or Attempt Suicide in Bahrain in One Week
May 4th, 2010
Within a week, two housemaids have ended their lives in Bahrain and two have attempted to do so. Bahrain does not offer protection to domestic workers under its labor laws. On April 30, the Gulf Daily News reported that the body of Samantha Kumud, a 37-year-old Sri Lankan maid was found hanging from...
Lebanon: One more Ethiopian falling from the balcony
May 4th, 2010
Al-Akhbar newspaper reported today the death of Ethiopian maid Wilana Sbsay, who “fell” from the balcony of her employers in Antelias, north of Beirut. According to reports, Al-AKhbar said, she threw herself from the balcony.
Migrant Domestic Workers in the Middle East: Exploited, Abused and Ignored
April 30th, 2010
Abusive employers Bahrain Housemaids Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Legislation Racism Rape Saudi Arabia Sponsorship Suicide Trafficking UAE Working conditions
A new Human Rights Watch (HRW) report about the rights of migrant domestic workers focused heavily on the Middle East, and for a good reason: most regional governments do not include domestic workers under the protection of its labor laws, and the current regulations leave domestic workers open to e...
Interview with Kesang Tseten, maker of ‘In Search of the Riyal’
April 26th, 2010
Gulf Interviews Kuwait Qatar Working conditions
Kesang Tseten is a film maker based in Kathmandu who has worked on a number of projects documenting the lives of Nepali workers in the Gulf. He is currently working on Saving Dolma, a documentary about migrant workers in Kuwait. Kesang met with Migrant Rights editor Sophia Furber in Kathmandu to dis...
Bill Clinton Claims the UAE Passed Legislation Giving Migrants “a Better Deal”
April 24th, 2010
Housemaids Sponsorship UAE Working conditions
In a recent interview to ABC’s “This Week” former US President Bill Clinton claimed that the UAE passed laws to give “imported workers… a better deal”. This statement is wrong on many levels, moral and factual. Here is the full quote (emphasis ours): The — ...
Kuwaiti police stands idly by as a sponsor beats his worker
April 24th, 2010
Abusive employers Kuwait Legal cases
A Kuwaiti sponsor was seen beating his Asian worker with an iron rod near the Indian Embassy in Kuwait City as the police did nothing to stop him, the Arab Times reported this week. The worker went to the embassy to seek protection from his abusive sponsor, but did not reach his destination when his...
Philippines Brings 651 ‘Distressed’ Workers Home From the Gulf
April 23rd, 2010
The Philippine government has flown 651 of its nationals back from the Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE, as part of an ongoing campaign to bring ‘distressed’ migrant workers back from the Gulf. President Arroyo was at Ninoy Aquino International airport today to welcome back the returne...
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