Maid Wandering Bahrain

        Lakshmi Parvathi is an Indian immigrant worker in Bahrain.  She was hired by her sponsor as a maid. Recently, she was found in tattered clothing wandering the streets of Bahrain, following her attempted escape from her employer.  This was the second time she was unsuccessful in her attempt to flee from her abusive sponsor and return to her husband in Andhra Pradesh.  Previously, the police captured her and returned Parvathi to her employer.  The Indian Embassy would not issue her a return ticket, because she had not completed her year long obligation to the employer.  Therefore, she was not legally entitled to a ticket.  Additionally, she was unable to purchase a ticket on her own, because her employer had withheld three months of her wages. 
    Migrant workers are regularly mistreated in the Middle East.  The migrant workers, usually from Asia, are drawn to higher paying salaries.  The wages are usually around $4 for menial jobs. The workers are mostly women.  They usually work as maids at homes and cook, clean, and take care of children.  In exchange for their services, their sponsors provide the workers with housing and transportation.  Thus, the women send their salaries back to support their families. 
    The migrants are in weak positions to stand up for themselves.  Many of the nations fiercely protect their citizens and are repressive toward the migrant workers.  Therefore, it is difficult for the workers protect themselves from their sponsors’ abuse.  For example, when a migrant complains against her employers, it is easy for the employer to retaliate by making a false accusation against the worker.  The sponsors’ word is almost automatically trusted and the worker is quickly tossed in jail.  Once released from jail, the worker is returned to her employer to finish her obligation.  Also, it is difficult for the employee to protest that she is not being compensated her scheduled amount. The reason is that the employer can hesitate to pay the woman until the fulfillment of their obligation.  Immediately, upon the termination of the agreement happen, the woman’s visa expires expelling her from the country, and further isolating the employer from repercussions of the withheld payment.
    The local governments must protect these women.  Abusive sponsors have taken advantage of these women by beating them and also withholding payment from them.  The sponsors need to be made accountable for their actions.  This could be done by the Asian embassies issuing the visas to the sponsors by taking a more proactive approach to protecting their citizens.  For example, each sponsor should have to go to through a verification process.  Thus, it will at least protect the women from serial abusers.  Also, it should charge the sponsors a certain premium on the issuance of the visa to pay for an exit interview of the migrant workers.  The other solution for the women is to place outside pressure on the Middle Eastern countries to monitor the abusive employers.
Gulf Daily News. Maid found wandering in the street. 5 July 2007.
Bits of News. Migrant Workers in the Middle East. 2 July 2007.
Independent Online.  Migrants and the Middle East: Welcome to the other side of Dubai. 28 March 2006.
Middle East Report Online. “Model Employees:” Sri Lankan domestics in Lebanon.

Author: Impunity Watch Archive