Human Trafficking in [Saudi Arabia Street Children in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery Kingdom of Saudi Arabia [ Country-by-Country
Reports ] The Saudi Arabia is a destination country for men and women trafficked for the purposes of involuntary servitude and, to a lesser extent, commercial sexual exploitation. Despite strict labor laws and entry visa requirements, men and women from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ethiopia voluntarily travel to Saudi Arabia as domestic servants or other low-skilled laborers, but subsequently face conditions of involuntary servitude, including restrictions on movement, withholding of passports, threats, physical or sexual abuse, and non-payment of wages. Women from Yemen, Morocco, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Tajikistan, and Thailand were also trafficked into Saudi Arabia for commercial sexual exploitation; others were reportedly kidnapped and forced into prostitution after running away from abusive employers. In addition, Saudi Arabia is a destination country for Nigerian, Yemeni, Pakistani, Afghan, Chadian, and Sudanese children trafficked for involuntary servitude as forced beggars and street vendors. Some Saudi nationals travel to destinations including Morocco, Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh to engage in commercial sexual exploitation. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in Persons Report, June, 2008 [full country report] |
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CAUTION: The following links have been
culled from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLES *** Guest Worker May Lose Digits, Toes After Being Tied Up in Bathroom for a Month A 25 year-old Indonesian guest worker
will have several of her fingers, toes and part of her right foot amputated
because of gangrene after being tied up for a month in a bathroom by her
Saudi sponsor. The Indonesian Embassy noted that 2,000 housemaids have
been repatriated to Indonesia so far this year, with many alleging
maltreatment, nonpayment of wages or physical abuse. Saudi
Arabia and contemporary slavery American women who have married
Saudi nationals and are inside the kingdom along with their female children –
some of whom have now reached adult age – are subjected to a situation in
which another person or persons have complete control over their lives, with
all rights and attributes of "ownership." They were forcibly
abducted or kidnapped in clear violation of the laws of other countries and
court orders issued by other countries. They were removed from their country
to a country beyond the reach of law enforcement and court orders. These women – which include my
adult, American-born daughters – have been hidden away in family compounds
for years, deprived of all the choices of basic living, including religion,
choice of spouse or age of marriage. They have been denied freedom of
movement, freedom of torture, equal rights of women relating to all issues of
family rights, the right to education, the right to remedies. Many of them
are subjected to wide abuse other than slavery – mental and physical torture,
including rape. Their basic human rights in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and other instruments of international human rights law are
being sacrificed. They are kept captive with no hope
of ever escaping. Some are told that they can leave, but their children must
stay. They must choose between freedom and their children – a "Sophie's
Choice" no mother should ever have to make. I have met women who have
done just that, and others who hunger for the breath of freedom so badly that
they are contemplating doing it – such a high price to pay. ***
ARCHIVES *** Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005 TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS – The government
has not taken sufficient measures to improve its performance on trafficking
issues, although it did name an official in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
to assume responsibility for trafficking in persons. Foreign laborers', including
domestic workers', passports were often illegally retained by their employers
and can sometimes result in forced labor. Foreign nationals who have been
recruited abroad have, after their arrival in the country, been presented
with work contracts that specified lower wages and fewer benefits than
originally promised. A reportedly small number of non-citizen women were
thought to engage in prostitution, comprising a minor element of the
trafficking problem in the kingdom. SECTION 6
WORKER RIGHTS – [d]
Child beggars were reportedly often non-citizens who had been trafficked into
the country for that purpose or are Hajj or Umra
over-stayers. The Ministry of Social Affairs
maintained special offices in both Bur of Democracy,
Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports on Human Rights
Practices - 2004 TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS – Among the
millions of foreign workers in the country, some persons, particularly
domestic workers, were defrauded by employment agencies or exploited by
employers; some workers overstay their contracts and are exploited as they
have few legal protections. Many foreign domestic servants fled work
situations that included forced confinement, beating and other physical
abuse, withholding of food, and rape. Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - 2001 [7] The Committee is concerned
that the broad and imprecise nature of the State party's general reservation
potentially negates many of the Convention's provisions and raises concern as
to its compatibility with the object and purpose of the Convention, as well
as the overall implementation of the Convention. Saudis
address human trafficking concerns The Saudi Human Rights Commission voiced concern over human trafficking gangs exploiting immigrants and foreigners during the pilgrimage season. Commission spokesmen Dr. Zoheir al-Harethi said people making their pilgrimage to Mecca plan to find employment but instead find themselves exploited by local gangs. Harethi said immigrants "fall prey to gangs that use them for begging and prostitution" and noted many of the exploited are children, al-Arabiya said Friday. U.S.
human trafficking report misses progress: Saudi "Examining the American
report on human trafficking, we felt that it was misleading ... It contains
descriptions, opinions and understandings that are not necessarily true,"
Turky Al Sudairy, head of
the government's Human Rights Commission said in a statement published in
Saudi newspapers. "While we accept that there
are some who mistreat (domestic) workers, and this is not acceptable, there
are laws that stipulate punishment and the Commission will not hesitate to
reveal practices and violations."
Around a third of Saudi Arabia's 24 million population are foreign
residents, mostly blue-collar workers from Asian countries. Over a million
work as housemaids, and reports of abuse are common. Saudi employers often
retain their passports. Sudairy said the authorities had taken
stringent measures to regulate the labor market, which he said was subject to
abuse by recruitment agencies. He said Saudi Arabia has laws to prevent child
labor. "The efforts being exerted
have not finished yet and we cannot claim such a thing," Sudairy said. New study shames human traffickers www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143968455 Countries in the Middle East have
been named as the worst culprits of human trafficking. A new report by an international
trade unions’ umbrella organisation says Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates
and Yemen are notorious destinations for women trafficked from Kenya. Its report, ‘Trafficking in
Persons — The Eastern Africa Situation’, notes that women and children were favourite targets for well-organised
trafficking rings, which operate freely for lack of solid laws against the
vice. Saudis
deny human trafficking allegations The Saudi government has denied a
recent report released by the US Department of State ranking the kingdom as
one of the largest human traffickers in the world. Saudi Ambassador
Criticizes U.S. Human Trafficking Report Al-Faisal said Saudi Arabia has
imposed regulations to control mistreatment of servants and employees,
prosecuted those accused of mistreatment and opened shelters for victims. Key
Witness missing in CO slavery case against Homaidan
Al-Turki and Sarah Khonaizan An Indonesian woman who was kept
as a virtual slave and who was also a key witness against a Saudi Arabian
couple, Homaidan Al-Turki
and his wife, Sarah Khonaizan. A modern day slavery
case where the victim was forced cook clean and was sexually abused. Saudis
Import Slaves to America It's shocking, especially for a
graduate student and owner of a religious bookstore - but not particularly
rare. Here are other examples of enslavement, all involving Saudi royals or
diplomats living in Saudi
sheik: 'Slavery is a part of Islam' A leading Saudi government cleric and
author of the country's religious curriculum believes Islam advocates
slavery. "Slavery is a part of
Islam," says Sheik Saleh Al-Fawzan, according to the independent Saudi Information
Agency, or SIA.
In a lecture recorded on tape by SIA, the
sheik said, "Slavery is part of jihad, and jihad will remain as long
there is Islam." His religious
books are used to teach 5 million Saudi students, both within the country and
abroad, including the Guest
Worker May Lose Digits, Toes After Being Tied Up in Bathroom for a Month A 25 year-old Indonesian guest
worker will have several of her fingers, toes and part of her right foot amputated
because of gangrene after being tied up for a month in a bathroom by her
Saudi sponsor. The Indonesian Embassy
noted that 2,000 housemaids have been repatriated to Forced-Labor
Charges For Saudi Prince's Wife The wife of a Saudi prince was
arrested yesterday for allegedly forcing two Indonesian housekeepers to work
for her family at homes in Freedom
House Country Report - Political Rights: 7 Civil Liberties: 6 Status: Not Free Human Rights
Overview by Human Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights
Worldwide U.S. Library of Congress
- Country Study Saudi
Arabia Prostitution Facts Both women had contacted Suna in hopes of finding high paying work in Saudi
Arabia, but instead were forced into prostitution. The women were forced to
travel, in a tiny compartment below the truck's undercarriage or empty oil
tank of the vehicle tanker in the scorching sun, from one construction site
to another and to offer their sexual services. Upon arriving in the Saudi
capital, they were forced to share a five-metre-by-four-metre
room with seven other girls, one of whom was Suna's
sister. They were told that they would be engaged in prostitution, not
restaurant helpers as promised, if they wanted to live. Trafficking
and forced labour of children in the United Arab
Emirates continues ANSAR BURNEY TRUST RESCUES TWO MORE
'CHILD CAMEL JOCKEYS' IN UAE - . The Ansar Burney Welfare Trust
International is the only human rights organisation
working since last several years practically against slave labour in Middle East and Arab Countries to rescue the
innocent children working as child camel jockeys in very worst circumstances.
It has rescued total 318 children in this current year, 147 children on slave
in UAE and 171 children from Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Muscat, Kuwait and other parts of the Arab and
Middle East countries and sent them back to Bangladesh, Pakistan, Srilanka and other respective countries for their
rehabilitation Saudi Religious Leader Calls for Slavery's Legalization Muslims, in contrast, still think the old way. Slavery still exists in a host of majority-Muslim countries (especially Sudan and Mauritania, also Saudi Arabia and Pakistan) and it is a taboo subject. To enable pious Muslims to avoid interest, an Islamic financial industry worth an estimated $150 billion has developed. The challenge ahead is clear: Muslims must emulate their fellow monotheists by modernizing their religion with regard to slavery, interest and much else. No more fighting jihad to impose Muslim rule. No more endorsement of suicide terrorism. No more second-class citizenship for non-Muslims. In Islam Unveiled I explain the
theological and legal reasons why slavery persists in some Islamic societies
— notably Mauritania and Sudan. I had a little bit of information on slavery
in Saudi Arabia in there but for reasons I don't recall it didn't make the
final draft. Still, slavery was only abolished in Saudi Arabia in 1962, and
there are numerous indications that it continues today. Women
Who Wed the Wrong Wahhabi She describes her constituents as
women who "…have married Saudi nationals who were sent to the United
States to study in our colleges and universities. Once they accompanied their
Saudi husbands back to Saudi Arabia, they soon found out that they lost all
civil rights and became prisoners. Their children fall into that same
category of slavery and are denied even the basic human rights." The
Overthrow Of The American Republic - Part 30 Point by point, I discussed the
findings of a unit of the United Nations which had documented a terrible
truth. Here it was, late in the 20th Century, I told the crowd, that Saudi
Arabia and Kuwait, according to undisputed details of the U.N. unit, each had
huge numbers of BLACK CHATTEL SLAVES. Saudi, according to the findings, had
about one hundred thousand such slaves and Kuwait about fifty thousand of the
same. Saudi
Arabia and contemporary slavery American women who have married
Saudi nationals and are inside the kingdom along with their female children –
some of whom have now reached adult age – are subjected to a situation in
which another person or persons have complete control over their lives, with
all rights and attributes of "ownership." They were forcibly
abducted or kidnapped in clear violation of the laws of other countries and
court orders issued by other countries. They were removed from their country
to a country beyond the reach of law enforcement and court orders. These women – which include my
adult, American-born daughters – have been hidden away in family compounds
for years, deprived of all the choices of basic living, including religion,
choice of spouse or age of marriage. They have been denied freedom of
movement, freedom of torture, equal rights of women relating to all issues of
family rights, the right to education, the right to remedies. Many of them
are subjected to wide abuse other than slavery – mental and physical torture,
including rape. Their basic human rights in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and other instruments of international human rights law are
being sacrificed. They are kept captive with no hope
of ever escaping. Some are told that they can leave, but their children must
stay. They must choose between freedom and their children – a "Sophie's
Choice" no mother should ever have to make. I have met women who have
done just that, and others who hunger for the breath of freedom so badly that
they are contemplating doing it – such a high price to pay. The
world must know about this When 29-year-old Ramani Prianka accepted a job
in Saudi Arabia, she thought it would be a pleasant way to earn more money
than she could ever make in her native Sri Lanka. After all, she would be working indoors --
as a housemaid -- for a well-to-do, educated Saudi couple. He was the manager
of a big hospital; she was the principal of a school. How tough could it be? Very tough,
Prianka quickly discovered. The house had 20 rooms
and 13 bathrooms, and Prianka, the only maid, was
expected to clean every one every day. There were nine children, and Prianka had to wash all their clothes and cook all their
food. Seven days a week, she was up at 4:30 a.m. and never got to bed before
midnight. All this for the equivalent of $26 a week. Last year, at least 2,800 Sri
Lankan housemaids ran away from their Saudi sponsors, claiming they had been
overworked, sexually abused or physically mistreated by jealous wives. They
are among the countless foreign "guest workers" in Saudi Arabia who
live and work under conditions that are sometimes compared to modern-day
slavery. Not only should the US Government
support and provide assistance to citizens held against their will; but we
should examine why we are supporting a dictatorship that is holding MILLIONS
of persons against their will. The Kingdom of Saud
is guilty of imposing virtual slavery upon the women of Saudi Arabia. Not
only American service personnel are victims; and victims they are. Americans,
not allowed to have religious observances on holy days, women not allowed to
drive or dress as they wish when leaving military bases, not alowed to be in possion of
another Holy Book, the Bible. President
Wahid: Slavery Widespread in Saudi Arabia He expressed concern that many
Saudis may treat their Indonesian servants as slaves and sexually harass
them. Many Indonesian women who have
worked abroad come home with horror stories of being raped and badly treated
by their foreign bosses. But according to Wahid, the
Indonesian media often makes inaccurate reports on what goes on in Saudi
Arabia. "The media’s descriptions
created a public perception that our women workers were raped. The situation
is not like that. The Saudi people still believe in the old Islamic teaching,
which is belief in slavery. So a woman who works for them is considered a
slave," he said. For some men in
Saudi Arabia, sexual relations with a housemaid are not considered as rape,
because they believe that such a practice is permitted by their beliefs, he
added. Wahid also stressed the Saudi
government does not believe in slavery, but the practice is still common in
society. Saudi Arabia:Open for Business In this document Amnesty
International highlights the appalling human rights record that Saudi Arabia
has had in the past, and how the international business community needs to be
aware of the direct impact that Saudi Arabia's record on human rights has on
business interests. Businesses and governments around the world have overlooked the appalling human rights record of Saudi Arabia in the past. One of the arguments being that business interests and requirements are unrelated to human rights. It is time for the international business community to open its eyes. Americans Against the Sauduction of Washington - Issue #17 US CHILD SEX SLAVES IN SAUDI ARABIA - We are continuing a limited
investigation of the nonparental abductions of US
children by Saudi princes. We have interviewed past Saud
family palace domestic slaves who have been assigned to care for child sex
slaves primarily kidnapped from the US and Northern Europe. It seems
procedurally after being routinely processed by the Saudi Arabian Government
upon entry the children are immediately brought to the respective palace
where they are indoctrinated through a brainwashing practice. The suborning
technique through a system of rewards and punishments includes US child sex
slaves being given a Saudi name while their US name and religious beliefs are
expunged from their mind. If the children use their US name or religious
beliefs at any time thereafter, they are severely reprimanded with further
conditioning. In tandem, the US State Department policy is that it refuses to
investigate US child sex slaves within Middle East unless they are given the
US name of the child. The
Plight of Foreign Workers in Saudi Arabia In November 1998 two Egyptian
servants of Saudi Prince Turki bin Abd al-Aziz tied bedsheets together and lowered themselves from the rooms
on the 29th floor of the Ramses Hilton where they
had been imprisoned, unpaid, for months. The Prince, a full brother of King Fahd, has lived for 16 years on two floors of the
five-star Cairo hotel since his expulsion from Saudi Arabia for
"embarrassing behavior." The two servants, a butler and a cook, who
were seriously injured when they crashed onto a 24th floor balcony, made
familiar claims. They had been beaten, they had not been paid in months, and
they had been held against their will along with many other servants who were
still trapped inside. That these abuses were taking place outside Saudi
Arabia was somewhat unusual. Although less publicized, similar occurrences
are more common inside Saudi Arabia. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC §
107 for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use |
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Human Trafficking in [Saudi Arabia Street Children in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]