Human Trafficking in [Saudi Arabia Street Children in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries] |
Human Trafficking & Modern-day Slavery In the
early years of the 21st Century - 2000 to 2010 gvnet.com/humantrafficking/SaudiArabia.htm
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. Men and women from Bangladesh,
India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Sudan,
Ethiopia, and many other countries voluntarily travel to Saudi Arabia as
domestic servants or other low-skilled laborers, but some subsequently face
conditions indicative of involuntary servitude, including restrictions on
movement, withholding of passports, threats, physical or sexual abuse, and
non-payment of wages. Women, primarily from Asian and African countries are
also believed to have been trafficked into Saudi Arabia for commercial sexual
exploitation; others were reportedly kidnapped and forced into prostitution
after running away from abusive employers. Some Saudi men have also used legally
contracted “temporary marriages” in countries such as Mauritania, Yemen, and
Indonesia as a means by which to sexually exploit migrant workers. Females as
young as seven years old are led to believe they are being wed in earnest,
but upon arrival in Saudi Arabia subsequently become their husbands’ sexual
slaves, are forced into domestic labor and, in some cases, prostitution. - U.S. State Dept Trafficking in
Persons Report, June, 2009 [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 Hassan Adawi,
Arab News, Jeddah, 23 March 2005 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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. Pat Roush, March 15, 2003 At one time this article had been archived and may possibly
still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] 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. Saudis Import Slaves to Daniel Pipes, www.danielpipes.org/2687/saudis-import-slaves-to-america [accessed 21 December 2010] 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' WorldNetdaily, November 10, 2003 www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=35518 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 ***
ARCHIVES *** Human Rights Reports » 2005
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61698.htm [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Human Rights Reports » 2004
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2004/41731.htm [accessed 21 December 2010] 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) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 26 January 2001 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/saudiarabia2001.html [accessed 21 December 2010] [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 United Press International UPI, www.upi.com/Top_News/2007/11/16/Saudis-address-human-trafficking-concerns/UPI-39621195247289/ [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Reuters, www.reuters.com/article/idUSL0814554520070708 [accessed 21 December 2010] "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 Patrick Mathangani, The
Standard, May 11, 2007 At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] Countries in the 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 Mariam Al Hakeem,
Gulf News, gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudis-deny-human-trafficking-allegations-1.249699 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Associated Press AP, www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,198468,00.html [accessed 21 December 2010] Al-Faisal said Key Witness missing in CO slavery case against Homaidan Al-Turki and Sarah Khonaizan [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Daniel Pipes, www.danielpipes.org/2687/saudis-import-slaves-to-america [accessed 21 December 2010] 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' WorldNetdaily, November 10, 2003 www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=35518 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Hassan Adawi,
Arab News, Jeddah, 23 March 2005 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Stephanie Ebbert and Scott
Goldstein, The www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/03/31/forced_labor_charges_for_saudi_princes_wife/ [partially accessed
21 December 2010 - access restricted] 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 2009 Edition www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2009&country=7696 [accessed 21 December 2010] Human Rights Overview by Human
Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights Worldwide Human Rights Watch www.hrw.org/middle-eastn-africa/saudi-arabia [accessed 21 December 2010] Library of Congress Call Number DS204 .S3115 1993 lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/satoc.html [accessed 21 December 2010] Preecha Sa-Ardsorn,
"Saudi woman procurer surrenders before police," The Nation, 19
July 1998 At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] [scroll down to ... Posted: Tue Aug
03, 2010 6:41 am] Both women had contacted Suna in hopes of finding high paying work in Trafficking and forced labour of children in the At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] 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 Daniel Pipes, Lion’s Den, November 7, 2003 www.danielpipes.org/blog/2003/11/saudi-religious-leader-calls-for-slaverys [accessed 21 December 2010] 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. Slavery in Posted by Robert on Jihad Watch, November 4, 2003 www.jihadwatch.org/2003/11/slavery-in-saudi-arabia.html [accessed 21 December 2010] In Islam Unveiled I explain the
theological and legal reasons why slavery persists in some Islamic societies
— notably Women Who Wed the Wrong Wahhabi A version of this column by Ilana
Mercer was published by The Hudson Institute, June 19, 2003 www.ilanamercer.com/Wahabi_Women.htm [accessed 21 December 2010] She describes her constituents as
women who "…have married Saudi nationals who were sent to the The Overthrow Of The www.rense.com/general35/skolov30.htm [accessed 21 December 2010] 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. Pat Roush, March 15, 2003 At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] 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 Susan Taylor Martin, www.sptimes.com/2002/webspecials02/saudiarabia/day3/story1.shtml [accessed 21 December 2010] When 29-year-old Ramani Prianka accepted a job
in 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. Held Against Their Will John Randall Peacher, Jul 14,
2002, comment on item: Hearing on "Should the United States Do More to
Help U.S. Citizens Held against Their Will in www.danielpipes.org/comments/1268 [accessed 21 December 2010] 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 Indonesian Observer, www.malaysia.net/lists/sangkancil/2000-03/msg00055.html [accessed 21 December 2010] 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. Amnesty International, Index Number: MDE 23/082/2000, Date
Published: 8 February 2000 www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE23/082/2000 [accessed 21 December 2010] In this document Amnesty
International highlights the appalling human rights record that 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. US Child Sex Slaves In Herb Mallard, Co-Chairman, Americans Against The Sauduction Of At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 18 September 2011] [scroll down] The Plight of Foreign Workers in Brian Evans At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 11 September 2011] 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. PLEASE
RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES.
Cite this webpage as: Patt, Prof. Martin, "Human Trafficking
& Modern-day Slavery – |
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Human Trafficking in [Saudi Arabia Street Children in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]Child Prostitution in [Saudi Arabia] [other countries]