Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi (The following article was written before the announcement on Tuesday July 2 that the amnesty period will be extended to 1 Muharram 1435 H.) A recent Okaz report states that a circular was sent by the Ministry of Labor (MoL) to the Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC). In the circular, the Ministry informed the Council that it will restart, in coordination with the Ministry of Interior, a crackdown on all residency and labor law violators immediately after the expiry of the July 3 amnesty. The circular explains that it will act tough against violators including employers, expatriate workers and individuals after the end of office hours on Wednesday. The letter, sent by Deputy Minister of Labor Dr. Mufarij Al-Haqbani, was addressed to CSC Chairman Abdullah Al-Mubti. The CSC chief forwarded the letter to all chambers of commerce in the country urging employers to use the remaining grace period to rectify the status of their workers during the stipulated time. This measure came at a time when several chambers as well as businessmen in various sectors in addition to some writers and media personnel were demanding an extension of the grace period so that all those who are required to correct their status will have an opportunity to do so. A large number of expatriates are facing difficulties in correcting their residential status due to factors such as overcrowding and bureaucratic bottlenecks at Passports and Labor offices and at embassies and consulates. This is a strong indication that expatriates desire to rectify their status, especially laborers, low income workers, and housemaids who have run away from their sponsors. The ministry has promised that it will correct the status of foreigners even without the permission of their old employers and that they need not return to their former sponsors if they want to work for a new employer. But many expatriates say that it is hard to find a new sponsor, and that if they do, then they and the new sponsor face many difficulties in completing the paperwork required by Labor offices and Passport departments. The charges of paperwork expeditors (muaqib) which were not more than SR500 at the beginning of the amnesty, shot up to SR1,000 to SR2,000 as the grace period came to an end. This resulted in the flourishing of a black market with a thriving business for expeditors and agents. Expatriates who want to rectify their labor and residency status are the main victims of these people. There are also some sponsors who are blinded by greed and who seem to have lost their conscience and fear of God. These sponsors are not ready to do any good deed for their workers without accepting money for it. In most cases, they demand a large amount of money in return for any services they provide their workers. I have received several mails in which expatriates complain that their sponsors demand SR5,000 to SR10,000 for the issuing of a residency permit (iqama), in addition to the annual levy amounting to SR2,400. Some of these expatriates say that their sponsors are threatening that they will report to the authorities that the expatriates have absconded (huroob) if they refuse to fulfill their demands. This is a humanitarian issue that should be addressed seriously and there is no justification for keeping quiet about this. Finally, I would like to use this opportunity to apologize to all of my brothers who have sent me emails seeking my help in solving their problems because all that I can do for them is to write about their problems. I received an email from a Filipino woman who said that she arrived in the Kingdom one year ago but that her sponsor has still not had an iqama issued for her. Whenever she approaches him asking for him to correct her residential status, he threatens that he will report her as having run away. She explained that being a woman she faces difficulties in traveling or getting transportation, and, therefore, she asked my advice about what she should do to solve her problem. I feel that the best way for her to deal with this situation is to contact her country's consulate because that is the safest way for her. Similarly, a Pakistani brother, who works with an engineering company in the Eastern Province, asked me about another problem. The Pakistani national, who is presently working at a project site in Al-Laith, says that he has been unable to get a family visa for his wife of Iranian origin despite making an application more than one year ago. In this case, I can say that it is his company that should contact the concerned authorities to learn about the real causes of the delay in issuing a visa. — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected]
