Kafala system

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The Kafala System was created in the 1950s. It is a framework which defines the binding relationship between the migrant employee with their employer.[1] This system is used in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, and Lebanon. These countries are also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC.

The Kafala System affects a large amount of people, with 25 million migrants in the GCC in 2010.[2] The number has declined over time. In 2021, roughly 3.1 million migrant domestic workers are in the region.[3] The largest amount of domestic workers are found in Saudi Arabia, with nearly one million working there.[4]

Due to the amount of migrant workers in the GCC, governments have claimed that it is important to have an unequal legal status for the workers. The United Arab Emirates believes that this inequality allows the state to preserve national identity, provides advantages to those with citizenship and also maintains a stable society through the rule of law.[5]

Origins[change | change source]

The term Kafala originates from Classical Arabic, and refers to the relationship between the Kafeel, who is a person in a position of authority, with the makfūl, who is the vulnerable employee.[6]

In theory, the Kafeel is to take legal responsibility for the makfūl, without benefitting from the relationship through exploitative means. This means that the relationship was created with the intentions of the protection of the employee by their employer.

Conditions of the Workers[change | change source]

The conditions of workers in the Kafala system are seen as poor. The living conditions of workers are usually unhealthy. Construction workers are often forced to live in overcrowded and unhygenic living conditions.[7] Often, little is done to deal with the extreme heat of the region. The most common cause of death in young men is cardiac arrest due to the heat.[7]

Workers cannot leave the country without the approval of their sponsor. Leaving work is seen as a crime and can be punished by imprisonment or deportation. This applies even to cases where workers are unhappy or abused at work.[8] Often, workers are unable to leave the country. Many employers confiscate their passports upon arrival, even though this is illegal in most host countries.[7]

As the host controls the legal residency of the worker, they are able to fire and deport them at will.[8] Cancellation is a way to discourage workers from leaving the system. Should a host cancel a migrant workers contract in the United Arab Emirates, it would force the worker out of the nation and ban re-entry for six months.[8] This fear means that workers are pressured to keep themselves in the poor working conditions which they are forced to experience.

The Kafala System has come under criticism internationally for the treatment of workers. In 2010, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms. Navi Pillay, stated that the system is a form of slavery.[9] The International Labour Organisation has also claimed that the system may invite forced labour.[10]

Controversies[change | change source]

Modern Slavery in Lebanon and Kuwait[change | change source]

2022 World Cup in Qatar[change | change source]

Qatar won the right to host the 2022 World Cup in 2010. This was the first time a Middle Eastern nation had hosted the competition.[11] In order to host the competition many new stadiums had to be built. Many of the people involved in building these were migrant labourers from the Kafala system. Of Qatar's workforce, 95% are migrant workers working in construction or domestic work.[12]

Contreversy arose when journalists claimed that construction workers had lost their lives on this project. In 2021, UK newspaper The Guardian revealed that 6,500 people had died in relation to World Cup construction since 2010.[13] This is a number disputed by Qatari officials. The Secretary General of Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, Hassan al-Thawadi, admitted that between 400 and 500 migrant workers died from any construction related to the worldcup.[14]

Reforms to the Kafala System[change | change source]

Bahrain[change | change source]

Bahrain is one of the states that has gone furthest in reforming the Kafala system. In 2009, officials announced that they would dismantle the system. The Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) was established. This would now be in charge of sponsoring migrant workers instead of private employers.[15]

However, there have been criticisms of Bahrain's claims to have abolished the system. Some critics say that it is the same system as before, with the rules not properly being changed.[16]

Qatar[change | change source]

Qatar was the first nation to allow migrant workers to change their job without getting consent from their employer beforehand.[17]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ "What Is the Kafala System?". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  2. ↑ Malaeb, 2015, 307
  3. ↑ Parrenas, 2021, 2
  4. ↑ Parrenas, 2021, 2
  5. ↑ "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace", SpringerReference, Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, retrieved 2024-05-09
  6. ↑ Jureidini, Ray; Hassan, Said Fares (2019-11-06), "The Islamic Principle of Kafala as Applied to Migrant Workers: Traditional Continuity and Reform", Migration and Islamic Ethics, BRILL, pp. 92–109, ISBN 978-90-04-40640-7, retrieved 2024-04-25
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "FAQ - Migrant RightsMigrant Rights". Migrant Rights. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Parreñas, Rhacel Salazar; Silvey, Rachel (2021-06-07). "The governance of the Kafala system and the punitive control of migrant domestic workers". Population, Space and Place. 27 (5). doi:10.1002/psp.2487. ISSN 1544-8444.
  9. ↑ Malaeb, Hanan N. (2015-10-21). "The "Kafala" System and Human Rights: Time for a Decision". Arab Law Quarterly. 29 (4): 307–342. doi:10.1163/15730255-12341307. ISSN 0268-0556.
  10. ↑ "Labour Migration in the Arab States | International Labour Organization". www.ilo.org. 2016-08-25. Retrieved 2024-05-08.
  11. ↑ "Profile of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™". FIFA Publications. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  12. ↑ "Migrant Workers and the Qatar World Cup | Human Rights Watch". 2021-08-02. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
  13. ↑ Pattisson, Pete; McIntyre, Niamh; Mukhtar, Imran (2021-02-23). "Revealed: 6,500 migrant workers have died in Qatar since World Cup awarded". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-05-08.
  14. ↑ "Qatar World Cup Chief Publicly Admits High Migrant Death Tolls | Human Rights Watch". 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2024-05-08.
  15. ↑ 'Policy Brief No. 2: Reform of the Kafala (Sponsorship) System', Migrant Forum in Asia Secretariat
  16. ↑ Rights, Migrant (2009-11-11). "Three months after the Sponsorship system in Bahrain was "scrapped", what really changed?". Migrant Rights. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
  17. ↑ "Qatar: Significant Labor and Kafala Reforms | Human Rights Watch". 2020-09-24. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
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