Saudi sponsors and Runaways

The president of Fokasa has addressed one of the long standing issues in Saudi Arabia in the right perspective. Slavery appears to be abolished from the world, but the mentality to make the weak as slave is always there as the hidden agenda of the strong. Article 1 of the Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948 says: “ All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” But, in Saudi Arabia, such spirit of brotherhood is more often invisible when it comes to expatriate workers. Even though the Saudi press brings in focus the pathetic conditions of the expatriate workers now a days, the result-oriented settlements or solutions do not arrive in full swing. The sponsor is the determining factor to the destiny of the workers. The Saudi Labour laws guarantee many benefits to the expatriate workers. But the nexus between the sponsors and the vested interest sabotage them to exploit the workers here. This is the issue to be taken care of by the top authorities in the government. The government has to issue stringent directives to punish the sponsors and their accomplices as and when they breach the existing labour laws. And it has to appoint a special wing to monitor such human violations so that the workers can fearlessly approach for their benefits.