Saudi Arabia scraps kafala system
Reforms in Saudi Arabia continue.
In what is considered as a milestone in the plight of migrant workers, the Kingdom scraps the kafala system, the bane of workers.
Our own overseas Filipino workers
( OFW) and thei r families in the Philippines heaved a collective sigh of relief.
The kafala system is the gravamen of most of their complaints. It is a system that is debase, inhuman and unjust — an undisguised violation of basic human rights. That the Kingdom finally decided to thrash it is a welcome development. It is a big boost in promoting the diplomatic and political relationship between the Kingdom and labor exporting countries.
The system has for decades been an irritant in the labor relation between our country and Arab states. It makes life unbearable for our OFW. But it was a bitter pill that our workers have to swallow in search for a better life.
What is the kafala system? The system requires a sponsor, a person or company before a migrant worker is employed in an Arab country. The sponsor practically makes the worker his chattel. “Without their employer’s permission, a worker cannot leave the job, change jobs, or exit the country and the sponsor is able to threaten deportation if a worker questions the terms of the contract.”
The passports of workers are surrendered to the sponsor who enslaves them.
This has led to horror stories about our workers subjected to physical and sexual abuse.
We a l l heard about the heartrending tales of Sarah Balabagan who was sentenced to death in the United Arab Emirates in September 1995; of Flor Contemplacion hanged in Singapore in March 1995 after a questionable court decision; of Joanna Demafelis who was murdered and her body found in a freezer in an abandoned apartment a year after she was reported missing; of an employer pouring boiling water and Filipino maids leaping to their death and other gory tales. These are causes celebres courtesy of the kafala system.
No modern state can allow that kind of treatment. It is slavery in disguise.
The pandemic has had an influence in the decision to initiate this labor reform. Migrant workers facing mortality would rather return to their homeland, stay and die with their loved ones. The resulting depletion of workforce could jeopardize infrastructure programs for development. Observers speculate that
the decision was made upon the initiative of visionary Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MbS) who is making history for the radical cultural, social, religious and political reforms since taking over as the heir apparent.
This is a significant step considering that the Kingdom has always been playing the role of a big brother to other states in the region. With its enormous influence, there is optimism that other Arab states will follow. (Qatar has earlier rescinded the system.)
No wonder, the decision of the Kingdom drew immediate praise from the countries of origin of migrant workers like Indonesia and the Philippines.
The Office of the President, in an of f icial statement, observes that the labor reform initiative is a “significant step” in addressing the sponsorship system prevalent in the Middle East.
It will “strengthen cooperation in fields of mutual interest, including the promotion of rights and welfare of Filipinos in the Kingdom.” The decision will benefit near a million (including undocumented) OFW in the Kingdom whose remittances help propel Philippine economy.
The reform measure will no doubt confirm the Kingdom’s sensitivity to the feelings and conditions of its workers who have contributed immensely to its development. After all, the workers make life easy for Saudi citizens and are a necessary component in the building of the Kingdom as the world center of Islam.
Analysts agree that we are not seeing the last of the reforms that the Kingdom will undertake. Already, many are predicting that with the dynamic leadership of the youthful MbS, the Kingdom will be released from its dependence on oil wealth with the fruition of Vision 2030, his brainchild.
Meantime, the Islamic world continues to hope for the pandemic to ease so that Muslims can perform their obligatory pilgrimage to Holy Mecca.
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Analysts agree that we are not seeing the last of the reforms that the Kingdom will undertake.
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Without their employer’s permission, a worker cannot leave the job, change jobs, or exit the country.