So we hear a lot about how countries liek Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia etc use slave labor because people from Africa, india, pakistan, bangladesh or whatever come over to work and then they live in horrible conditions and their employers steal their passports so they can’t leave. How does this stop anyone from leaving?
I know for a fact that if you lose a US passport while you are abroad you can go to the embasssy and report it lost and they print an emergency passport which can be used to leave the country. Yesterday i was at an airport in Poland and someone from Italy or something had his passport stolen and he used some document printed by the embassy allowing him to leave. Do countries like india or pakistan or whatever not have these? I get maybe its dificult for africans since many african countries only have a few embassies abroad in other countries or they might not offer many services but can these people who are “enslaved” not just go to their embassies and explain the situation so they can leave teh country? Do their countries just not give a shit that they’re being “enslaved?” I understnad that Gambia or Guinea Bisseau can’t stand up to the UAE but surely India or Pakistan can.
In: 476
Most countries allow you to travel back to your home country if you can prove your nationality with a photo copy of your stolen or lost passport.
The problem with these migrant workers from poor countries is that they don’t have the freedom to just travel whenever they want. It costs them months, if not years, of work to be able to afford a ticket back home. So they don’t have the freedom that you think.
I’m not condoning the practice of employers keeping their employees passports’ btw just pointing this out for some additional nuance.
I believe workers rights are improving in those countries as their economies develop and their regulatory frameworks mature.
Latest Answers