Lebanon blast: Why can’t migrant workers go home?
As Beirut recovers from a huge explosion, The Stream examines the impossible situation facing domestic workers.
On Monday, August 24 at 19:30 GMT:
As Lebanon grapples with the aftermath of an explosion that killed more than 200 people and left thousands homeless, the country has plunged deeper into an economic, political and humanitarian crisis, with the United Nations now warning of widespread food shortages.
It is a catastrophic situation for any resident of the capital Beirut – but for migrant workers, whose standard of living and freedom of movement were already compromised, the situation feels hopeless. According to New York-based Human Rights Watch, the combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and this month’s blast has caused hundreds of employers to abandon domestic workers outside their embassies – often without money, passports or tickets home.
There are about 250,000 migrant workers in Lebanon, the majority being women from Ethiopia, Kenya and the Philippines. Most travel to Lebanon to work as domestic helpers, cleaning homes and taking care of children. On arrival, though, they are trapped by the ‘kafala’ system, a restrictive sponsorship policy that gives them no protection from labour laws and leaves them vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.
In this episode of The Stream, we’ll explore the terrible situation facing Lebanon’s migrant workers, ask what needs to be done to support them and what, if any, hope they have of returning home.
On this episode of The Stream, we are joined by:
Roula Seghaier, @IDWFED
Advocacy and Strategic Program Coordinator, International Domestic Workers Federation
idwfed.org
Abike Dabiri-Erewa, @abikedabiri
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission
nidcom.gov.ng
Banchi Yimer, @BanchiELB
Founder, Egna Legna Besidet
egnalegna.org
Read more:
Lebanon’s migrant workers abandoned amid economic crisis – Al Jazeera
Nigerian migrant worker back home after ordeal in Lebanon – Al Jazeera