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Sri Lanka will gradually stop allowing women going to Saudi Arabia to be housemaids after a Sri Lankan was executed in the country over the death of an infant in her care, the Colombo government has said.
The Indian Ocean island nation recalled its envoy to Saudi Arabia in response to the beheading on January 9 of Rizana Nafeek, who was sentenced to death in 2007 accused of killing her employer's daughter while she was bottle-feeding.
The government said it would raise the minimum age for female domestic workers to be eligible to seek employment in Saudi Arabia to 25 years from the present 21 with an eye on eventually stopping such employment altogether.
"Gradual phase-out is the idea," said government spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella. "We can't stop it overnight. It's a gradual process and increasing the age limit is part of that."
A third of the two million Sri Lankan maids working abroad are in Saudi Arabia, according to the country's foreign employment bureau.
Expatriate worker remittance, the top foreign exchange earner in the $59bn economy, hit a record $5.43bn in the first 11 months of 2012, higher than its annual peak of $5.14bn hit in 2011, central bank data showed.
Many households in the Middle East are highly dependent on housemaids from African and South Asian countries.
In some cases of reported domestic abuse, maids have attacked the children of their employers after they were mistreated themselves.
In the case of Nafeek, the Saudi Interior Ministry said, the infant was strangled after a dispute between her and the baby's mother.
Could you imagine what would happen if a large proportion of the educated, professional worker population suddenly left (let alone the domestic workers... more
Friday, 24 May 2013 1:26 PM - Khalid@both, the world is not the same all over; thankfully, the citizens of one country view things differently than another. Europe allowing something does... more
Friday, 24 May 2013 1:25 PM - SAMI was in Qatar yesterday and I had a good chuckle to myself about it all. There are three possible outcomes - all of which will be a monumental mess. ... more
Thursday, 23 May 2013 3:35 PM - SteveAs much as I love the UAE, this will be a problem for them in the future. Lets look at this from any democratic Country on Earth. If I decided not to turn... more
Wednesday, 22 May 2013 11:56 AM - Ty SayCould you imagine what would happen if a large proportion of the educated, professional worker population suddenly left (let alone the domestic workers... more
Friday, 24 May 2013 1:26 PM - Khalid@both, the world is not the same all over; thankfully, the citizens of one country view things differently than another. Europe allowing something does... more
Friday, 24 May 2013 1:25 PM - SAM
Top managment greed is one of the main reasons that caused the 2008 crises. hope i delivered the message..
more
As much as I love the UAE, this will be a problem for them in the future. Lets look at this from any democratic Country on Earth. If I decided not to turn... more
Wednesday, 22 May 2013 11:56 AM - Ty SayCould you imagine what would happen if a large proportion of the educated, professional worker population suddenly left (let alone the domestic workers... more
Friday, 24 May 2013 1:26 PM - Khalid
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