Some Nigerian women who work as domestic staff after being illegally trafficked to Saudi Arabia, have been killed by their bosses in the country.
Victim of domestic violence by her boss in Saudi Arabia
Two Nigerian girls trafficked to oil-rich Saudi Arabia to work as housemaids have been killed by their respective employers. The killings of the two young women occurred within a space of two weeks in the respective homes where they worked as servants by their Saudi bosses.
The first Nigerian girl to be murdered was by name Omotayo who until her death in June 2018 worked as a migrant domestic worker in Riyadh. She sent this photo to her friends in a group chat called “Strong Nigerian Ladies” – a solidarity group created by Nigerian migrant domestic workers in Saudi Arabia.
The group is a resort to self-help because the Nigerian Embassy in Riyadh has never for once responded to any of the SOS (Save Our Souls) telephone calls nor text messages sent by Nigerians in distress in the Gulf country.
Omotayo, in her June post which happened to be her last, narrated to the solidarity group her latest incident of battery in the hands of the Saudi family she worked for. Her boss and the entire family had descended on her for being disrespectful to them.
The maid’s only offence was that she insisted her three-month salary arrears be paid to her. She had put her foot down saying she would no longer accept excuses for the non-payment of her salaries just as she said she was tired of eating leftover food. Her action was seen as an affront.
No one can say with certainty what happened afterwards. A few days later she was dead. It is believed she must had been subjected to more beatings and torture.
Shola lying on a hospital bed
While the solidarity group was mourning the death of Omotayo, another Nigerian maid was sent to early grave. The second girl was by name Shola. Her story was told by Adeola Oladipo, another housemaid in the Strong Nigeria Ladies Group:
“Shola has been constantly assaulted and starved by her sponsor in Saudi Arabia. Whenever she demands for food they would always beat her up and she became so slim like somebody with HIV.
“One day her male boss came as usual to beat her while she was doing chores in the kitchen. The beating became so severe she had to defend herself with a knife. In the process the knife cut her boss and her sponsor hit her on the neck and she collapsed.
"When the boss saw that Shola was dying, he rushed her to the hospital where he said she suddenly fell ill. A few days later, the Nigerian gave up the ghost in the hospital.”
According to a report by ITUC-Africa, an estimated 2.1 million migrant domestic workers continue to risk severe labour exploitation in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). However, this estimated number is most probably far higher.
Mostly women from Asia and Africa, migrant domestic workers face harsh conditions while employed in the Gulf.
Often confined to the home, they are isolated and at risk of exploitation. Commonly, they are not paid, not paid in full or not on time. The hours of work are often extreme, and some GCC countries do not set maximum hours of work in law. In those countries that regulate daily rest, workers can still be required to work up to 16 hours a day legally.
Some workers are exposed to physical abuse such as beatings and sexual violence, including rape. This abuse can last for months or even years. The vast majority of migrant domestic workers are obliged to live in their employer’s home, which makes them extremely vulnerable.
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