THERE will no doubt be much hue and cry from certain quarters in this country about the employment criteria announced recently by the Indonesian government related to the recruitment of housemaids, or domestic workers, and drivers. We agree, however, with the Indonesian government that the rights of their workers have to be protected. The same rules that would apply to Saudi workers in foreign countries, should also apply to expatriate workers here. We also support protection for Saudi sponsors. Leaving aside for the moment the rights and wrongs of the sponsorship system – which is considered by many to be antithetical to human rights – the rights and privacy of employers should also be respected. But we must ask why a driver and housemaid should have less protection than any other worker? If anyone seeks employment at a company, that worker has the right to find out who his or her employer is, the working conditions and environment, staff numbers, workload and the financial state of the company. If we say this kind of information is not needed for domestic workers, then we are implying that they have fewer rights than others. If this is the case, then they are obviously, following this distorted logic, sub-human. Domestic workers should have equal protection and there should be constant vigilance and monitoring that laws and regulations are complied with. There have been well-documented instances of violence and discrimination particularly against female domestic workers by their sponsors. We cannot remain in denial about this recurring problem. One statistic we published in this newspaper last year was that errant Saudi sponsors had to cough up SR3.7 million in unpaid salaries to Indonesian domestic workers over the period October 2009 to October 2010. This is not to say that Saudis in general are prone to this behavior. Across the world domestic workers – poor, young, female, uneducated and non-white – suffer abuses and indignities. There must be laws to protect them from abusive employers. It is not too much to ask prospective Saudi employers to provide details of their house and family members, a certificate from the police confirming no criminal record, and proof of earnings. However, due to cultural sensitivities, there should be negotiations between the governments of the Kingdom and Indonesia over the inclusion of photographs and copies of identity cards for women family members. Also, providing such detailed information needs safeguards for employers. An easy solution is for the Saudi government to hold such information, with access allowed only to approved Indonesian officials. This situation is not insurmountable, it can be resolved through negotiations and ensure a win
