Fearful sponsors forcing workers to leave

Fearing penalties for failing to rectify the status of their workers before the July 3 deadline, some sponsors are now forcing their workers to leave the country on final exit visas.
Maulvi Abdul Jalil, a worker, told Arab News that his sponsor is forcing him to leave the country even though his transfer to a new sponsor is currently being processed.
Jalil said his ordeal started when his sponsor's company went into the Red Zone of the Nitaqat system about two months ago. His employer then told him to find other work. He initially failed to transfer to an individual but later found a job with a company.
However, “my sponsor called me to his home to say he needs to talk, and then forced me to go with him to the police station,” said Jalil. His sponsor asked the police to keep him in jail.
“For my exit and ticket arrangements, he sold my car at the junkyard without my permission even though I told him that my papers were being processed at the Passport Department. I told him that the end of the amnesty period would not affect me but he would not listen to me,” said Jalil.
Jalil’s bail bond was paid by his landlord but his sponsor is still forcing him to leave. He said that he has been in the country for the past 25 years and supports 12 family members in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
“I worked here for a long time but have not been able to build or save anything. If I return now I will return a pauper,” said Jalil.
Another worker, Abdul Muhit, said his paperwork is also being processed, but his sponsor wants him to leave. He said his sponsor claims he would get into trouble if his documents are not processed by the deadline.
Abdul Muhit said he has been trying to get a “mandoub”, or liaison officer, to speed up the paperwork, but this costs anything between SR 5,000 and SR 6,000.
Many companies have also complained that mandoubs charge fees in proportion to the size of queues outside government offices.