TO  :  All SRI LANKANS IN KUWAIT

An article which appeared in the “Al Watan Daily” of 07th January 2010 is appended below for your information.

Ambassador lauds police officer for quick action, compassion
Sri Lankan domestic helper severely beaten, imprisoned for 18 months
(Ricky Laxa, KUWAIT)

A Sri Lankan domestic helper who worked for her Kuwaiti employers for two years was brutally beaten, held against her will and not paid her salary for seventeen months. The domestic helper finally managed to escape her employers and sought refuge at a police station where a security officer rushed her to a nearby hospital for immediate treatment.

 Medical reports stated that the domestic helper had experienced hard blows to her face, body and lower parts and was suffering from hematoma and concussions. The labor officer of the Sri Lankan Embassy spoke to Al Watan Daily and provided detailed reports that included recorded murders of two of their nationals during the month of December, 2009.
After speaking to the Sri Lankan domestic helper, the labor officer of the Sri Lankan Embassy told Al Watan Daily that she had worked for a Saudi royal family for ten years. She then moved to Kuwait in the hopes that she would find better opportunities and a better salary. She received a job at the home of an officer of the Kuwait Fire Brigade. "My male employer has been very nice to me, but the wife beat me several times for eighteen months. I was locked in a small room where I could not even lie down or sit, but remained standing for hours. I wept for years and suffered in silence, hoping that they would change the way they treated me, but I could not bear the daily beatings, hunger and other abuse she (female employer) inflicted on me. I decided to run away and sought refuge in a police station close to my house," the domestic helper recalled.

Furthermore, the domestic helper complained that even bread given to her by her male employer had always been taken from her. "I survived on water and a little left over scrap food. My female employer made me strip naked and forced me to take cold showers on several occasions after beating me, and the pain was unbearable," the domestic helper added.

The labor officer of the embassy stated that a Kuwaiti officer called the embassy and informed them of the domestic helper''s condition. The labor officers rushed to the location and found the domestic helper with multiple concussions, swollen and half conscious. She told the embassy labor officials that a police officer at the station where she sought refuge called an ambulance, but due to the delay of the ambulance service, she was taken by the same officer to AlـAdan Hospital where she received immediate treatment.

"The embassy is grateful to the police officer who showed compassion to our national and to his wife for bringing clothes, food and money to the domestic helper in the hospital," said the labor officer.

Two deaths of Sri Lankan domestic helpers last month have also been recorded in the labor section of the embassy; a national was allegedly murdered by her employer on Christmas Eve, and a domestic helper was severely beaten and locked on the rooftop of a home for two days without food and water. Forensic reports stated that the domestic helper died of hunger, complications from injuries, and cold weather. Both victims had not received their salaries for one and half years.

Sri Lankan Ambassador to Kuwait K.S.C. Dissanayake told Al Watan Daily that the labor officers of the embassy have visited the victim in the hospital and that a legal case has been filed against the employer. The envoy urged local authorities to speedـup the investigations so that the legal process can move forward.

"I believe that the justice system of Kuwait is just, unbiased and holds everyone accountable for the crimes they commit. In our part, we will follow up these cases and ensure that the victims receive their rights, compensations and that justice is served," the ambassador stressed.

He added that Sri Lanka and Kuwait have very strong ties and that such cases should not hinder nor affect the relationship of the two countries. "We will live up to the mission of our embassy in Kuwait, which is to protect the rights and safety of our nationals," concluded the Envoy.

There are currently 110,000 Sri Lankan nationals in Kuwait, approximately 85,000 are domestic helpers, and the remaining work for the private and public sectors as engineers, technicians and workers in the hospitality and information technology sectors. Sri Lankan medical personnel are expected to join Kuwait''s workforce soon.ـ