We and our housemaids: The untold stories
A SHORT story in one of the electronic sites about the journey of a housemaid from her home to our country alleviated fears about the maltreatment of domestic help in our country. The brief story told how the smile of a Saudi housewife and her hugging of her housemaid upon arrival erased the anxiety the latter had lived through upon leaving her home for the unknown amidst the tears and cries of her children.
This was, in fact, a move for which we should thank the Saudi Human Rights Commission. We were expecting such work from the commission and the Labor Ministry whose responsibility it is to reflect a positive image of the work environment and humane treatment of foreign manpower in general and housemaids in particular. By so doing, we will be responding to the distortion campaigns against our country and society.
Discussions about domestic help are as rampant as ever in our society. Some believe that housemaids are not treated well and that there are violations against them which cannot be denied. A second group, which I personally support, claim that our society is by its very nature an Islamic one and as such, any act of aggression against foreign workers is an unacceptable act which should be punished. The cases of maltreatment are, however, very rare when we compare them to the overwhelming examples of good treatment.
Drivers and housemaids are usually provided with decent accommodation consisting of TV sets, air conditioners, beds and mattresses which are often similar to those of the other family members. The question of the protracted working hours which some people protest about are, for the most part, not beyond the reasonable. Resting hours are sometimes given to drivers and housekeepers during the day time instead of in the first part of the night depending on the circumstances of the family. This is done in agreement between the two sides. Some people also claim that the salaries are low compared to the work they undertake but it is obvious that there are other benefits outside the contract such as the clothes and gifts granted to the helpers during Eid breaks and other occasions. Some housemaids are also given good loans through paying them their salaries in advance. Many of them are able to build houses in their home countries and to ensure their families live decently. This is a legitimate right for them in lieu of their efforts and work.
The issue of domestic help in our country is unique on a world level. The employer shoulders the entire costs of recruitment including visa fees, air tickets, medical insurance and others. He risks bringing in people he knows nothing about into his home to live with him and his family under the same roof.
The stories of peaceful coexistence between Saudi families and the foreign housemaids are plentiful but they unfortunately remain hidden from media focus. Such stories should be documented in order for the image distortion that prevails to be countered.
It would be appropriate for such stories to be published in the form of interviews. These interviews should be published locally and externally in various languages. These interviews are sure to be picked up by writers who will make use of them to write humanitarian success stories.
We have seen many workers and housemaids bid their employers farewell in tears when they travel on vacation, let alone on upon leaving definitively. They become a member of the family for which they work. A story recently published in one of the newspapers spoke about a citizen in the Eastern Province who surprised his foreign driver with a farewell party when he was about to go home on his annual vacation. Sweets were distributed and smiles exchanged during the party. The happy driver proudly told his friends and relatives about the farewell party given to him by his sponsor. Such an act is a reliable indicator of how he was treated during his time working with the family. This is just one example in numerous untold stories of the close relationships between sponsors and employees. Such stories will reflect the principles of our nation and tell the world how we give foreign manpower the value it deserves.
