RIYADH, 8 August 2005 — Members of the expatriate community have said that the government under Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah should strengthen the legal mechanism for the protection of expatriates.
They also support the Kingdom’s recently announced “Look East” policy and favor a Saudi initiative for an international conference on security and economic cooperation involving the countries of South and Southeast Asia. Among other issues, they want the government to look into the problems of overseas contract workers and re-examine the criteria for the granting of Saudi citizenship to expatriates.
Amin Yusuf, a Sri Lankan expat, said the government under King Abdullah needs to streamline the procedures for the legal protection of expatriates.
He said the law as it stands lacks a mechanism to ensure the presence of the employer in the labor court in the event of a dispute with his employee. “In the absence of a proper legal procedure, an employer can get the hearing adjourned by simply absenting himself on the day of hearing,” Amin said, adding that expatriates were also unable to obtain free legal advice as they cannot afford to pay the lawyer’s fee.
Dr. Riad Jawed Khawaja, secretary-general of the Pakistan Doctors’ Group, said the Saudi leadership should follow up on its recently announced “Look East” policy. The Kingdom interacts extensively with countries in South and Southeast Asia in the fields of trade and commerce as well as in its capacity as the heartland of the Islamic world.
Echoing his views, Dr. Alex Luqman, a Filipino expat, said King Abdullah could take the initiative of organizing an international conference on security and economic cooperation with the countries of South and Southeast Asia. Such an initiative would be widely welcomed for two reasons.
First, terrorism as a global phenomenon has surfaced in this region, which could join hands with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states as part of a concerted drive to beef up security in the region.
Second, the economic blocs in the pan-Asian region could lay the groundwork for free trade on the same pattern that the Kingdom is now trying to establish with the European Union.
On the question of Saudization, Dr. Riad Khawaja said in its keenness to push through the Saudization program the government is treating highly experienced expatriate professionals on a par with Saudis with little experience. He hoped that the government would give due consideration to experienced people.
Muhammad Mauyag, a Riyadh-based OFW, stressed the need for reviewing the criteria for the granting of Saudi citizenship, since very few expatriates would be able to score 23 points — the minimum requirement to be eligible for Saudi citizenship.
Saidali Malik, chairman of the Council for Unified Filipino Muslim Leaders in Riyadh, said he has come across cases in which contract workers were compelled by their employers to pay for their exit-re-entry visas as well as renewal of iqamas in contravention of government rules. This is having an adverse impact on the OFWs. He hoped that the government would redress the grievances of the expatriate community in this regard.
