Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Plight of Foreign Workers in Muslim Countries Continues

A young woman lies in a Saudi hospital with her head bandaged, her lips cut off, burns all over body and broken bones.

The shocking photos of her injuries have caused an uproar in her home country of Indonesia but many fear Sumiati is not alone in her suffering.

She arrived in Saudi Arabia in July a high-spirited 23-year-old, eager to start work as a maid to help support her family back home.

Four months later, she is Indonesia's poster child for migrant abuse, alone and staring vacantly from a hospital bed, her face sliced and battered.

But while public anger has forced President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's government to acknowledge the problem for the first time, few expect any firm action to be taken.

Gruesome images of Sumiati, now recovering in the Saudi city of Medina, have been splashed on the front pages of local newspapers in Indonesia and led TV news for more than a week.

Her employer - who has been taken in for questioning by police - is accused of cutting off part of her lips with scissors, scalding her back with an iron, fracturing her middle finger, and beating her legs until she could hardly walk.

She was admitted to the hospital three weeks ago unconscious, with signs of malnutrition and blood loss, and could barely speak, in addition to the horrifying visible injuries.

She claims the mother and daughter both beat her regularly.

'It's hardly the first such case,' said Wahyu Susilo of the Indonesian advocacy group, Migrant Care.

'Again and again we hear about slavery-like conditions, torture, sexual abuse and even death, but our government has chosen to ignore it. Why? Because migrant workers generate $7.5billion of dollars (£4.7billion) in foreign exchange every year.'

Workers from Asian countries dominate service industries in the Middle East and there have been many reports of abuse - including recent allegations that an employer in Kuwait hammered 14 metal pins into the body of a Sri Lankan maid.

'The wanton brutality alleged in these cases is shocking,' said Nisha Varia, senior women's rights researcher at the New York-based Human Rights Watch. It has called on authorities to investigate claims promptly and bring those responsible to justice.

She and others called cases like that of Sumiati the 'tip of the iceberg'. (Read more.)

11 comments:

donna60 said...

Where is Mr. Lewis now? Since he spent his debate on why he left his liberal version of Christianity for Islam based on Islam's moral superiority, I, for one would like to know why he hasn't left Islam as it becomes more and more apparant that Islam lacks a moral compass at all.

I've known some liberal Christians in my day, but none of them thought that taking one of those tiny little Indonesian females and beating them into pulp was the godly thing to do.

Come on Mr. Lewis, show us some moral outrage!

Jabari said...

@donna60

It's clear that Shadid Lewis didn't take a look at what Islam is doing to people in the Middle East (where it started)when he decided to convert to Islam, because if he did, I doubt he wouldn't be a muslim today. It might have something to do with his own inconsistency.

cmclvr said...

Take a closer look. It is pure Islam at work! Devout Muslims cannot respect dignity of labour. If some one is employed by them, most devout never treat it as a contract of service. Instead, it is equivalent to employing slaves and abuse of slaves is a permitted feature of Mohammeden Islam. The Prophet’s example must be followed and there is no room for compassion and mercy for slaves and unbelievers as it will be clearly an un-Islamic practice.

This raises an important question that why did Mohammed’s Koranic lies became insanely violent and cruel as his end neared? The answer is psychological. All his increased murders, loot, rape and enslavement of innocent unbelievers began to haunt his conscience. He could not afford to confess about his lies for fear of being lynched by his followers. He was also terrified that he will be exposed after his death if his cult fails to continue his murderous ways. He was also terrified of going to hell alone as he drenched himself several times over with the blood of innocent lives for fulfillment of his pervert and selfish desires. The only way left for him was to make his criminal ways look moral and normal to his guilt ridden mind so that he will be assured of company here as well as in hell. He must have had believed that might may become right and it may give him a best chance to bargain for his sins. This is the reason why he was very particular about insisting his followers to imitate his personal behaviour. His guilt and after life fears are very much evident in his strong insistence that he must be considered as a “perfect” man ever lived! Sumiati’s ghoulish and battered look is a direct result of his brainwashed followers imitating the perfect man. His company in hell is well assured.

Sophie said...

I can well understand why this happens so commonly - women in Saudi Arabia are surely frustrated to the point of violence by the restrictions on their lives and the neglect and belittlement of their needs and feelings. They can't go out on their own, so they must get bored and frustrated. They can't do things without the permission of a male guardian, so they must feel as if they lack control over everything in their lives but their servants. They no doubt need an outlet to vent their suppressed jealousy over their husband's other wives, too, and their anger at knowing that they count for nothing.

donna60 said...

mclvr wrote

"This raises an important question that why did Mohammed’s Koranic lies became insanely violent and cruel as his end neared?

I wonder if he could have had tertiary syphilis. One theory suggests it was introduced to Europe via the Americas, but I would sure like to know when it turned up in Arabia.

The problem with syphilis coming from the America's is that the Treponema species related to South America are T.pallidum pertenue and T.pallidum carteum. (very common in central and south America. The theory is that somehow, these non-veneral spriroches became blood-born in the Europeans. This seems unlikely.

That diagnosis would also explain Muhammed's apparent sterility. I say this because with all of his wives, he had very few children. And his only son died in infancy, suggesting congenital syphilis.

donna60 said...

Jabari, then why doesn't he leave Islam? Where is his moral outrage?
I know what the bible says about chastity, and I know that all sins are are equally spiritual rebellion,but if my granddaughter were to chose between fornication (I hope she never does) or beating and mutilating a smaller woman than herself, I would prefer she be a fornicator.

--not that I want her to be a fornicator--not that at all. I'm just saying.

donna60 said...

Sophie,
Come on! C-o-m-e O-oooon! There are godly women in this country who are married to tyrants.

I once listened to a sermon where the preacher said he had seen some men treat their wives so badly, that he believed that if the wife ended up in Hell, she might look around and think 'Well this isn't so bad!'

These women remain in the marriage, and are sweet, and generous, and kind as can be.

As a matter of fact, in the bible
Abigail was married to Nabal who "was harsh and evil in his doings." It didn't make her bad! Do you really think you would do that, even if you were in an abusive marriage? I doubt very seriously that you would do that!

This is not a feminist issue. This is not an issue where 'her husband made her do it.' This woman did this to a servant girl, which I would love to have--who cleaned and polished up after every move she made--because of her own sin- filled heart.

If I had a servant to clean my house for me, I would wake up every single morning and say "Thank you, Heavenly Father!"

goethechosemercy said...

An evil man has an evil vision and forms a corrupt, anti-pluralistic society.
His evil vision deceives many into believing it is perfect and should never change.
And so we have Islam.
Here are the fruits by which it will be judged.
The Indonesian government has been made corrupt and silent by Islam.

Fernando said...

Dear donna60... Shadid Lewis did not leave Christianity due to thate motive... it was a girl's affair as some other blogger in this blog ounce proved...

donna60 said...

Fernando, Do Tell! Really!, Really! Do Tell. I haven't ran into the information yet.

Where is Mr. Lewis? Calling Mr. Lewis! It's not like we are talking about him behind his back.

Fernando said...

Hi donna60... yes... you cann sheck itt out for yourself readding a post in these blogg aboutte some debate whithe Shadid Lewis...