Thousands of undocumented foreigners in Saudi Arabia, including many Indians, who refused to or just could not legalise their status during the grace period are now spending sleepless nights. They have stayed away from work since 3 November when the seven-month general amnesty ended, most of them hoping the raids would end soon and it would be business as usual. Im scared to death after seeing all the photos of handcuffed foreigners in newspapers and on social media sites, said Nasir Lateef, a Riyadh-based expatriate. The crackdown on illegal workers has so far led to over a million leaving Saudi Arabia. The overall intent of the crackdown is to increase the number of jobs for Saudi citizens. Those in violation of the new labour laws are being detained, punished, deported, and permanently banned from working in the Kingdom. Saudis hiring them illegally face a two-year jail term, fines up to SR100,000 ($30,000), confiscation of vehicles used to transport workers, and being permanently banned from recruiting foreign workers. The Saudi government offered a three-month amnesty period in April in which illegal workers could either get themselves into legal jobs or to apply for an exit visa. The offer was extended by four months in July due to the number of people whose permits were not correct or which had expired. The amnesty period finally ended on 3 November 2013. Lateef says he is not undocumented. I have a valid iqama (residency permit), but I can be arrested during a raid because the profession on my residency permit says Im an accountant, while Im actually an auto repairman. Saudi laws stipulate that a foreigners job profile should match with the profession listed on his residency permit. There are hundreds of workers like Lateef in Jeddah, Dammam and other cities who thought the raids would simply not take place, or that they would end in a week. The ferocity of the raids has alarmed us, said Nayyar Siddiki, an Indian teacher in Jeddah. Nobody wants to take the risk of venturing out, he said from his home in the expat-dominated Aziziyah district. Siddiki admits that it was wrong not to transfer his sponsorship to the school where he teaches. Im not alone, many of my colleagues thought that since they have iqamas they would not be arrested, he said. Now we are confused and rue the decision not to undergo the correction process. Those staying home are relying on what is termed in expat circles as raid fatigue on the part of the Saudi government. The government, however, has made it clear that there would be no letup in the raids. This is a comprehensive, long-term and a Kingdom-wide campaign, said Brig. Mansour Al-Turki, the Interior Ministry spokesman, the day the amnesty period ended. Labour Ministry has devised a comprehensive raid mechanism. In the first phase, officials raided areas teeming with expatriates, including vegetable markets, industrial areas and workshops specialising in repair and painting of automobiles. They arrested thousands of illegal workers. Inspectors have not yet raided commercial establishments and international schools. There is near unanimity among Saudis that the govt is doing right thing. Its now or never, Saeed Al-Shamrani, a teacher at a govt school in Jeddah. No country can accept undocumented and illegal workers on such a massive scale, he said. The numbers arrested indicate the magnitude of the problem.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 17:19:55 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015