Alleged kidnap victim faces family’s rejection

The Saudi woman reportedly abducted and forced to marry and work as a housemaid in Pakistan for 21 years faces the prospect that her family may refuse to accept her.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Osama Nugali discussed the woman’s case during a talk show on MBC television.
The woman, known as Umm Amal, was interviewed Sunday on “Eight O’clock,” a Saudi television show.
Nugali said Umm Amal contacted the Saudi Embassy in Karachi in 2011.
“She told them that she was a Saudi national and needed to establish her Saudi citizenship. We referred the matter to the Ministry of Interior, which informed us that they contacted the father, who told them that she was his daughter and that she eloped with a Pakistani man 21 years ago,” he said.
Nugali said ministry officials tried to reconcile Umm Amal and her family. They tried especially hard with her father. He was made to obtain a passport for his daughter, although he strongly objected to her coming back to Saudi Arabia. The father said her life was in danger because her brothers would kill her.
“The passport was sent to Islamabad, with instructions from us that she would get her passport at the airport, and a seat would be booked for her on the flight,” Nugali said. “The idea was to facilitate her travel arrangements. We informed the Pakistani authorities of her so that they would not stop her at the airport because her passport shows no immigration stamp certifying her entry into Pakistan. Umm Amal, Pakistani documents during her stay in Pakistan.”
He added: “We asked our embassy to advise us of the time of her arrival in the Kingdom, so that we could meet her at the airport, protect her from being harmed by her family, and try to reconcile her with her family.”
The ministry rented and furnished a house for the woman. Saudi officials also secured a job for her at the Saudi School in Pakistan, but her father said he would not accept that his daughter work there because of the delicate nature of the situation. He promised to pay her an amount equivalent to her salary. But he never kept his word, Nagali said.
“It’s obvious that the main problem Umm Amal has is with her family. From a procedural point of view, everything is ready and accounted for. Even her kids, who have Pakistani nationality, can be accommodated,” Nugali said.