Alarm over Kenyan stuck in Saudi Arabia
Kesses MP Julius Rutto has raised an alarm over another Kenyan woman stuck in Saudi Arabia despite needing immediate medical attention back home.
Kesses MP Julius Rutto has raised an alarm over another Kenyan woman stuck in Saudi Arabia despite needing immediate medical attention back home.
In a letter penned to the Principal Secretary for Diaspora Affairs, Roseline Njogu, on October 13, the MP relayed that the Kenyan, Frenda Chelangat, had travelled to the Middle Eastern nation on a two-year contract, but when she got sick, she could no longer work and thus could not fund her way home.
Besides suffering from the illness, Chelang’at has also reportedly suffered other severe hardships, including being denied her rightful salary and experiencing difficult working conditions.
“I am writing to you today with a desperate plea for assistance regarding the return of a Kenyan citizen, Frenda Chelangat, who is currently in a difficult and urgent situation in Saudi Arabia,” MP Rutto wrote.
“Frenda Chelangat is in Saudi Arabia on a 2 (two) year work visa as a domestic worker; however, she is currently in a dire situation due to illness and a severe medical issue that requires her to return to Kenya for treatment.”
In addition to not having enough money to fund her way back home, the MP further relayed that the agency that had facilitated her travel to Saudi Arabia had refused to hand over her travel documents.
As such, the lawmaker requested assistance to cover all the repatriation costs including a plane ticket to Nairobi, temporary housing, essential living expenses until she could travel and immediate access to medication.
“She was a breadwinner to her family, a valued community member and hardworking, but currently experiencing fear and immense stress,” he relayed.
“The family has exhausted all other options and is now relying on the generosity and action from the Kenyan government to facilitate her journey back home.”
Chelang’at’s mother had approached the MP with the distressing case during a public celebration.
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Accompanying the letter were images of the victim, with her legs seemingly tied and her hands also tied to her back.
As such, the MP relayed that, in addition to writing to the PS Njogu, he would be meeting with the Foreign Affairs PS Koris Sing’oei on Tuesday, October 14, at his office to follow up on the case.
“Every Kenyan working abroad deserves dignity, fair treatment, and protection. My office remains committed to pursuing every available channel to ensure Frenda’s safe repatriation,” he asserted.
Chelangat is just the latest case in which a Kenyan worker in Saudi Arabia has been caught up in abuse during their stay. In a report by Amnesty International in May, it was revealed that Kenyans working in the West Asian country are facing various forms of abuse, including forced labour, exploitation, and human trafficking.
The report came after the NGO interviewed 72 women who reported being physically assaulted by their employers or their employer’s children.
The women, who spoke after returning to Kenya, said their employers and their families would spit on them and would also beat them up. The abuses sometimes escalated to sexual harassment and violence by male members of the families they worked for.
With nearly 200,000 Kenyans working in Saudi Arabia, the organisation called on the government to quickly take action to protect these migrant wokers, lest the vulnerable workers will be left trapped in exploitation.
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