Expat workers in Saudi Arabia hope for ‘miracle’ Tribune Report Labour Amnesty deadline ends Wednesday Bangladeshi migrant workers are seen in a queue for buses as they await repatriation outside a transit camp Photo- Commons Thousands of illegal workers from various countries, including Bangladesh, are in a state of uncertainty as the amnesty period announced by the Saudi Arabian government is scheduled to end Wednesday. The distressed workers run desperately from pillar to post, either to correct their status so they can continue working in Saudi Arabia, or to leave the country. The scenario is the same in major cities like Jeddah or small towns like Al-Ahsa and Hail. Thousands of hapless illegal expat workers throng deportation centres to clear their papers. In Jeddah, only 10% of the applicants have been able to complete the formalities for extension. The other 90% have lost all hope of completing the process in such a short period. Several thousands of Asian expatriates who want to take the exit route have been sleeping on the roads in Dammam, waiting for their turn to record their biometrics at the deportation centre. The situation in Dammam is worsening by the day, with illegal workers from Nepal, India and Bangladesh who have still not been able to record their biometrics. In Riyadh, the biometric recording is far better but there are still dozens of cases of workers turned back by immigration officials because their exit details were not complete. The process has been slow in almost all cities and towns because of the limited logistical support. But the matter of most concern is that some expats, with final exit visas, have not been allowed to leave the country. Many of such cases have been reported at the King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh. The Bangladeshi mission has done everything possible, not only in Jeddah but all over the Kingdom, to help their citizens, but the slow process at the deportation centres have only helped to counteract the mission’s efforts. Every day, thousands of applicants continue to approach the Bangladeshi consulate inquiring about the chances and possibility of an extension of the grace period. Meanwhile, a number of businesspersons are threatening to file a lawsuit against the Ministry of Labour and the Passport Department for what they insist is “the extremely slow pace of corrective procedures.” Abdullah Radwan, chairperson of the committee of contractors at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said more than 50% of the construction companies had not been able to correct their workers’ statuses. “Some small and medium size construction companies are thinking along the lines of taking the government departments to court for urgent relief,” he said. The labour ministry of the KSA warned that it would impose fines and jail sentences against illegal workers after the July 3 deadline.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Jul 2013 05:58:04 +0000