Departing alive, returning dead
Violence against Bangladeshi domestic workers in the Middle East, mainly Saudi Arabia, is nothing new. We have been hearing such news for long. Often, these simple workers are lured by middlemen who take advantage of their situation. Once in the Middle East, they become “prisoners” who are tortured to unimaginable extents. The ones who are lucky enough to return alive, bear the scars of their horrendous experiences. Regarding the deceased, what is absurd is the fact that the Saudi authorities mostly “certify” the cause of death as “suicide” or “stroke”. Our government must take immediate steps to stop the suffering of our people in foreign lands. It is clearly evident that the embassies are not taking strict measures. Some countries who used to send domestic help to Saudi Arabia got fed up of such barbaric behaviours and restricted the number of workers travelling there. We should simply not send our people to those countries where their safety cannot be guaranteed.
Alia Haq, Dhaka
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