"Migrant workers need more attention in Arab Gulf countries"

Foreign workers in Dubai, September 2016 (illustration).

AP - Kamran Jebreili

Text by: Nicolas Keraudren Follow

4 min

In “ 

, journalist Rejimon Kuttappan aims to retrace sixty years of Indian labor migration in the Arab monarchies of the Gulf.

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Before being deported to his country of origin, India, journalist Rejimon Kuttappan lived in the Gulf region for more than ten years.

In his new book, he tells the story of eight of his compatriots - four men and four women - in an irregular situation.

RFI: What is the message you wanted to convey?

Rejimon Kuttappan:

In the Gulf region, the stories we hear are from people who have “made it”. However, Indian government statistics show another reality. There are 9 million Indian nationals in the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Jordan and Lebanon. Among them, 8.5 million earn less than 50,000 INR (Indian rupees) per month (less than 600 euros, editor's note)

The majority of salaries are even below INR 25,000 per month (less than 300 euros, editor's note). These are the people who face the problems of migration.

But to give it a positive image, the host and home countries do not talk about their difficulties.

This would risk highlighting the fault lines in labor migration.

These stories are neither told nor heard.

In this book, I therefore wanted to show that migrant workers require more attention, especially in the Arab Gulf countries where forms of labor exploitation exist.

Has the situation of these illegal workers changed in 60 years of migration in the Gulf?

At the time, these workers were not at all a problem in the region. They were even welcomed with open arms by the host country. But now, when they find themselves in an irregular situation, they are illegal. This is certainly the biggest challenge they can face in the Arab Gulf countries. Their most basic human rights, such as access to health, access to diplomatic representation and even the right to enjoy decent working conditions are violated.

They are seen as cheap labor that can be easily targeted.

They do not have a regular job, they can be arrested, imprisoned and then deported.

On a regular basis - usually every two or three years - however, Arab states grant an amnesty.

It is an opportunity for migrants in an irregular situation to leave the host country without paying the required fines.

When this amnesty is granted, between 100,000 and 200,000 migrants in each Gulf country take the opportunity to return.

Despite these challenges, labor migration from India to the Gulf countries continues to be significant.

How to explain this?

The historical, cultural and religious ties between India and the Gulf region play a vital role. These links date back to the times of the British East India Company. Today, it is the fourth generation of Indians who migrate to the Gulf. Some of their ancestors succeeded there or are at least familiar with the area. All these factors therefore favor Indian migration to the Gulf.

Of course, the weight of local currencies like the rial (in Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar, editor's note), dinars (in Bahrain and Kuwait) and dirhams (in the United Arab Emirates) also makes a big difference.

For example, an Omani rial is equivalent to around 200 Indian rupees nowadays.

So people migrate even though they are exploited.

In addition, the opportunities are always great in the Gulf, because the economy of these countries is also dynamic.

Jobs, both for “blue collar” and “white collar” workers, are therefore available.

According to an S&P report, the population of the Arab Gulf States fell by 4% in 2020 during the health crisis.

This report spoke of the “exodus” of expatriate workers.

How was this crisis experienced in particular by the Indian community in these countries?

In the state of Kerala in India alone, more than a million people have returned without a job.

The majority of them arrived from the Gulf.

Many have had to give up their unpaid wages and severance pay.

They all came back empty-handed.

In addition, of the 3,700 Indians who died from Covid-19 in foreign countries, around 3,500 died in these countries.

This reveals the lack of social protection and access to health for Indian migrant workers.

Those who returned to India also struggled to find new jobs and families could no longer rely on remittances from abroad.

Undocumented, Stories of Indian Migrants in the Arab Gulf,

 Penguin editions, 296 pages

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