‘Modern-day slavery': Kenyan domestic workers tell of abuse in Saudi Arabia
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Loading... - Morowa Sowah
- 27 Sep 2022
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When Joy Simiyu left Kenya for a new job as a domestic worker in Saudi Arabia, she believed her life was about to take a turn for the better. While the 25-year-old had never envisioned herself making a living through housework, her dreams had grown distant after she dropped out of college due to financial pressure.
“I was desperate for a job,” said Simiyu, one of a growing number of Kenyans who travel to the Gulf to seek work, pushed out by the country’s high unemployment rates.
But within months, Simiyu was back in Kenya, with a harrowing but familiar tale of employer abuse, cautioning others against travelling to Saudi Arabia for work.
Saudi Arabia is known for its poor labour and human rights record, and is widely considered one of the most dangerous places to work in the world. Employers in the Gulf state have been dogged by allegations of physically, mentally and sexually abusing their migrant housekeepers for years; claims which continue to resurface.
In Kenya, reports of abuse sparked fresh outrage earlier this month when online photos of a young Saudi-based Kenyan worker, Diana Chepkemoi, looking frail went viral, along with claims that she was facing employer abuse and neglect. Under growing pressure from the public, the government repatriated her and a few other domestic workers facing a similar plight in the Gulf state, including Simiyu. Read More...
