An estimated 600,000 people have been ‘tricked and trapped’ into forced employment in the Middle East, many of them also sexually exploited, the UN International Labour Organisation (ILO) reported at the first regional conference on human trafficking held in Amman, Jordan, that concluded today.

The ILO, issuing the findings of a two-year study based on 650 interviews, called for an overhaul of employment practices in the region, notably an end to the ‘Kafala’ system of sponsorships. It is ‘inherently problematic’ because it creates an unequal power dynamic between the employer and the worker, ILO said.

“Labour migration in this part of the world is unique in terms of its sheer scale and its exponential growth in recent years,” head of ILO’s special action programme to Combat Forced Labour Beate Andrees said at the start of a two-day conference on the topic.

“The challenge is how to put in place safeguards in both origin and destination countries to prevent the exploitation and abuse of these workers,” Andrees told the more than 100 participants from a dozen Arab countries — Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Yemen.

The report, ‘Tricked and Trapped: Human Trafficking in the Middle East’, that ILO presented was based on more than 650 interviews conducted over a two-year period in Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait and UAE about how the workers are ‘tricked and trapped’ into forced labour and sexual exploitation, and the constraints that prevent them from leaving.

The two-day meeting in Amman focused on how to put into practice international anti-trafficking commitments by examining the policies currently on the books. “Human trafficking can only be effectively tackled by addressing the systemic gaps in labour migration governance across the region,” said deputy regional director for Arab States Frank Hagemann.

The Middle East hosts millions of migrant workers, who in some cases, exceed the number of national workers substantially, it was pointed out. In Qatar, 94 per cent of workers are migrants, while in Saudi Arabia that figure is over 50 per cent, according to International Labour Organisation. Meanwhile, in Jordan and Lebanon, migrants also make up a significant part of the workforce, particularly in the construction and domestic work sectors.

Those industries are particularly susceptible to abuse due to the Kafala or sponsorship system.

The report points to deficits in labour law coverage that ‘reinforce underlying vulnerabilities of migrant workers’ as well as significant gaps in national legislation that ‘restrict the ability of migrant workers to organise, to terminate their employment contracts and to change employers.’

 Published on: 11 April 2013 | The Himalayan Times