Parade and Festival for Workers' Day 2013

It is this time of year again. Mark your calendars for Sunday, April 28th.

All details on the facebook event.

Kindly share widely.

Domestic workers highlight sponsorship system flaws

The Daily Star on September 24, 2012 - BEIRUT

Domestic workers tied to Lebanese “employers” danced in a flash mob on Beirut’s Corniche Sunday evening, in a performance designed to highlight the flaws in the sponsorship, or kafala, system which governs their work contracts. Organized by the non-governmental organizations KAFA and Insan, the event, accompanied by live music, drew a large crowd, and after the short, choreographed dance, flyers were handed out, and those who favor abolishing the system were invited to sign a large banner.

There are 200,000 migrant domestic workers in Lebanon, and the sponsorship system legally ties each of them to their employer,

Migrant Workers in Lebanon: No to Medieval Treatment

By: Sanaa Khoury, Al-Akhbar English, edited translation from the Arabic Edition, published Friday, April 27, 2012

The Migrant Workers’ Parade and Festival, set for Sunday in Beirut, is seeking to “change mentalities” about foreign workers in Lebanon.
African migrant workers continue to be called fahmeh (charcoal) or abed (slave) on Lebanon’ streets. Asians can still be addressed as “Jackie Chan” or “Bruce Lee.” Arab laborers are routinely referred to as mukhabarat (informers) or as “stinkers.”

The racism practiced by part of Lebanese society against migrant workers is medieval. Yet the Lebanese state refuses to enact laws

في عيد العمّال (الأجانب)... «كفى» عنصرية

«لأن العمال الأفارقة ما زالوا ينعتون بالفحمة والعبد في شوارع لبنان، والآسيويين ما زالوا يسمّون بجاكي شان وبروس لي، والعمال العرب ما زالوا يسمون بالمخابرات والـ«طالعة ريحتهم»؛ لأنّ الدولة اللبنانية ترفض أن تشرّع قوانين تحمي العاملات والعمال الأجانب (...) حيث بعض المجتمع اللبناني ما زال يمارس عنصرية القرون الوسطى على الوافدين/ات...»، سيشهد الأحد 29 نيسان (أبريل) الجاري تظاهرةً احتجاجيّة فريدة.

«حركة مناهضة العنصريّة» وجّهت الدعوة على فايسبوك إلى الاحتفال بعيد العمّال، تكريماً لمن يربون أولادنا، وينزهون كلابنا، ويحرسون أبنيتنا، ويبنون الأبراج الشاهقة التي ترتفع في عاصمتنا. هذا العيد ليس عيداً للعمال اللبنانيين فقط، بل هو يوم لكلّ كادح يتعب لتأمين لقمة عيشه. من أحقّ بالاحتفال بهذا اليوم في لبنان من العاملات في الخدمة المنزليّة مثلاً؟ هذا ما فكّرت به الحركة بالشراكة مع جمعيّات «كفى»، و«نسويّة»، و«إنسان»، و«الرعاية الرعوية للمهاجرين الأفارقة والآسيويين PCAAM» التي ستنظّم تظاهرة تطالب بإلغاء نظام الكفالة الشبيه بأنظمة الاستعباد.

متابعة القارءة: http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/63022

Eight organisations in Lebanon: Stop Abuse of Domestic Workers

(Beirut, 23 March 2012) – Lebanese authorities should act quickly to reform restrictive visa regulations and adopt a labor law on domestic work to address high levels of abuse and deaths among migrant domestic workers, a group of eight concerned civil society groups said today. The government should also announce publicly the outcome of the investigation into the recent abuse and subsequent suicide of Alem Dechasa-Desisa, an Ethiopian domestic worker.

The eight groups are Human Rights Watch, Caritas Lebanon Migrant Center, KAFA (enough) Violence & Exploitation, Anti Racism Movement, Amel Association International, Insan, Danish Refugee Council, and Nasawiya.

On March 8, 2012,

A road map for replacing ‘kafala’ system for migrant workers

(Arabic follows English - العربي يلي الإجليزي)

The Daily Star on February 25, 2012 - BEIRUT: A draft proposal to replace the sponsorship system for migrant domestic workers in Lebanon was introduced by the rights organization KAFA (enough) Violence & Exploitation Friday, with outgoing Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas giving his full support to the initiative.
The comprehensive policy paper outlines the main problems arising from the sponsorship, or “kafala,” system, and suggests recommendations

Advocacy video by Kafa association: "Don't push her to commit your crime"

Kafa Association video highlighting the suicide rate of migrant domestic workers in Lebanon.

Original caption on YouTube:

يأتي هذا الإعلان ضمن مشروع أوسع حول حماية عاملات المنازل الأجنبيات في لبنان، وهو يضيء على نسب "الانتحار" العالية في صفوف هؤلاء العاملات... للمزيد من التفاصيل الرجاء الضغط على هذه الوصلة

Campaign background information in Arabic: http://kafa.org.lb/News.aspx?Newscode=31&title=

Campaign slogan: "Don't push her to commit your crime" The image below as put on billboards on streets.

PS: I view that almost all media campaigns over the past 3 years have proven to have close to zero impact.

KAFA launches domestic workers rights campaign

September 06, 2011, The Daily Star, BEIRUT

The nongovernmental organization KAFA: Enough Violence and Exploitation has launched a media campaign to raise awareness of the often dangerous conditions which foreign domestic workers endure in Lebanon and to urge authorities to implement the relevant legislation needed to protect them.

The stark poster features the image of a hanging noose, and reads: “Don’t push her to commit your crime: toward legal protection for domestic workers in Lebanon.”

In a statement, KAFA laid out some of the rights which domestic workers are often deprived of in Lebanon, including the right to rest, travel and communicate and the right to keep their own private documents, such as passports.

The statement adds that many workers are subjected to violence, sexual abuse and even human trafficking.

حملة إعلانية لحماية عاملات المنازل

 Kafa violence against women launched a media campaign with the following headlines "Don't push her to commit your crime" and "towards legal protection of domestic workers in Lebanon". Assafir newspaper.

جريدة السفير - أطلقت منظمة «كفى عنف واستغلال» حملة إعلانية تحمل عنوانين «لا تدفعوها لارتكاب جريمتكم» و«نحو حماية قانونية لعاملات المنازل في لبنان»، كجزء من مشروعها عن عاملات المنازل الأجنبيات في لبنان الذي تعمل على تنفيذه منذ مطلع العام 2010.
وأوضحت المنظمة، في بيان لها، أنه «تم إطلاق هذه الحملة، بتمويل من السفارة النروجية، لرفع منسوب الوعي المجتمعي عن هذه القضية الإنسانية التي تعنينا جميعا وحض السلطات المختصة على اتخاذ التدابير القانونية اللازمة لتأمين الحماية للعاملات المقيمات في لبنان وهن بمئات الآلاف».

الإساءة إلى العاملات الأجنبيات في لبنان مستمرة بلا قانون يجرّمها وينظّم المهنة: قصصٌ من يومياتهن مع "الكفيل" و"المخدوم" وصولاً إلى اللا - تحقيق في جرائم القتل!

حيواتهن بيننا تنمو على حافة الموت ظلماً (فادي أبو غليوم)

جريدة السفير، 2 آب 2011، نبيل المقدم
لم يكن قد مضى أكثر من ستة أشهر على مباشرة «كلارا» العمل في منزل مخدومها في غزير، في قضاء كسروان، عندما قررت الهروب بـ»أي ثمن». انتظرت الصبية الفيليبينية خلود سكان المنزل الى النوم، ورمت بنفسها من الطابق الثاني. وعلى الرغم من التواء ساقها، أكملت «كلارا» فرارها، مستقلة سيارة أجرة إلى بيروت.
تقول «كلارا» لـ»السفير» إن عملها «كان يبدأ عند السادسة صباحاً، ويمتد حتى منتصف الليل». ولم تحصل خلال ستة أشهر أمضتها في العمل على راتبها كاملاً سوى مرة واحدة، ولكنها «حظيت» بالكثير من «الصفع والركل من صاحب المنزل وزوجته بسبب مطالبتها بأجرها». طبعاً، كانت «كلارا» تنام في المطبخ، مفتقدةً أي خصوصية حياتية.
يسلّم مسؤولون رسميون وحقوقيون وناشطون في مجال حماية الفئات المهمشة، ومن ضمنها العاملات في المنازل، بأن انتهاك حقوقهم يشكل ظاهرة مقلقة في لبنان، لناحية تعرّضهم لـ»باقة» كبيرة من الإساءات الجنسية والاقتصادية والنفسية والجسدية.
وفي ظل استثنائهن من قانون العمل اللبناني،

العمال المنزليون: اتفاقية دولية جديدة تحرج لبنان

يتوقع أن تبصر النور في جنيف، غداً، الاتفاقية الدولية بشأن «العمل اللائق للعمال المنزليين». تعمّق هذه الاتفاقية الجديدة الهوة بين مشروع قانون «تنظيم العمل اللائق للعاملين في الخدمة المنزلية» الذي تقدم به الوزير بطرس حرب في شباط الماضي، وبين التزامات لبنان بمعايير حقوق الإنسان
بسام القنطار، جريدة الأخبار، 15 حزيران 2011

هيثم الموسوي- جريدة الأخبار

تستمر في جنيف اجتماعات الدورة الـ100 لمؤتمر العمل الدولي. ويشارك لبنان في المؤتمر الذي يختتم أعماله في السابع عشر من هذا الشهر، بوفد يمثل أطراف العمل الثلاثة (الحكومة وأصحاب العمل والعمال). البند الاهم على جدول أعمال المؤتمر إقرار اتفاقية جديدة بعنوان «العمل اللائق للعمال المنزليين» تكملها توصية تتعلق بتنظيم عمل هذه الفئة من العمال، التي تعيش في العديد من البلدان في ظروف استغلال وتمييز. وتخوض المنظمات غير الحكومية الدولية حملة من لإقرار هذه الاتفاقية التي تواجه تحفظات حكومية كبيرة، ابرزها من دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي التي تستضيف ٢,١ مليون من العمالة المنزلية.

ويقدر حجم العمالة وفق الإحصاءات الرسمية بـ٥٢,٦ مليون عامل، فيما تشير التقديرات غير الرسمية الى ان العدد يتجاوز المئة مليون. اما في لبنان فيقدر العدد بين ١٣٠ و٢٠٠ ألف عامل

On the new draft law for regulating domestic workers in Lebanon

 المحامية مهنا إسحق تعلّق على مسودة قانون عاملات المنزل التي أقرّت مؤخرا. مدة المداخلة: ساعة وعشر دقائق.

In Arabic. Lawyer Mohana Isaac who works with Kafa Association explains the main features and critiques of the proposed law for regulating domestic workers in Lebanon and affording decent work conditions. The talk was on Thursday June 2nd, hosted by Nasawiya (the Feminist Collective). Runtime: 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Discussion on Draft Law for Domestic Workers with Lawyer Mohana Isaac next Thursday

This Thursday June 2nd, at 7pm, Nasawiya is hosting a discussion at Nasawiya on the new draft law for organizing decent work for domestic workers in Lebanon. Lawyer Mohana Isaac who works with Kafa will explain the main features and critiques of the proposed law.

More domestic workers making use of hotlines, other help mechanisms

By Alexandra Taylor, Special to The Daily Star, Saturday, December 18, 2010

BEIRUT: As the United Nations commemorates International Migrants Day Saturday the situation of the estimated 200,000 migrant domestic workers in Lebanon remains problematic.

International focus on the issue intensified when a 2008 Human Rights Watch (HRW) report said domestic workers were dying at a rate of more than one a week in Lebanon. As recently as September 2010, KAFA (Enough), a women’s rights advocacy organization, documented nine deaths of domestic workers in a one-month period.

A lack of mechanisms to report incidents of abuse contributed to the dire situation for many foreign workers.

The Labor Ministry established a hotline to address this issue in June, but its impact has yet to be assessed. According to a September HRW report, as of July, not a single worker had contacted the ministry’s hotline.

However a source from the ministry said the hotline was now receiving calls regularly, and that Labor Minister Butros Harb had made revamping legislation on the situation of foreign workers a “highest priority.”

The source said the ministry would unveil a long-awaited draft law to address foreign workers’ conditions and was about to complete a translation, into 14 languages, of the Unified Work Contract, which now covers their status.

Meanwhile, KAFA has been active in offering its own confidential hotline service for abuse victims and has seen an increase in calls from migrant domestic workers due to its recent outreach efforts.

According to the hotline’s senior social worker, Rima Abi Nader, prior to KAFA’s outreach program, “People didn’t know what was here. You need to build a certain level of trust.”

KAFA’s new program to reach out to migrant workers began in June with the publication of a newsletter, whose first issue tackled the language gap.

Al-Shorfa.com: Foreign domestic workers in Lebanon lack legal protection

Source: http://www.al-shorfa.com/cocoon/meii/xhtml/en_GB/features/meii/features/main/2010/10/20/feature-02

With an estimated 200,000 domestic workers, Lebanon became one of the top nations in the world that rely on foreign domestic help, with one maid for every 16 families.

The workers primarily come from Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, the Philippines and Nepal. The conditions in which they work and live have become a topic of much discussion following the release of a report in September by Human Rights Watch (HRW).

The report called on the Lebanese judiciary to protect female foreign domestic workers. The conditions are so bad, the report said, it leads some workers to commit suicide.

According to the report, "violence against women workers often fails to gain the attention of the police and prosecutors who do not file a lawsuit except in cases of serious physical violence backed by comprehensive medical reports."

The report seems to confirm recent research carried out by other human rights organisations.

A study commissioned by KAFA (Enough) in June of 2010 found that over 50% of the women work more than 12 hours per day

Nepalese Community in Lebanon celebrates Dashain

 

Yesterday, 17 October 2010, members of the Nepalese community in Lebanon flocked to a church hall in Sed El Boushrieh, North of Beirut, to celebrate Dashain Festival. A Kafa flyer in Nepalese was distributed. The Anti-Racism Movement contributed to the organization and to mobilizing Lebanese to join the celebration.

This is Al-Akhbar's coverage of the event, in Arabic: http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/210739

 

Press release: Female migrant domestic workers face abuse in Lebanon

Danish Refugee Council and partner organisation KAFA (enough) Violence & Exploitation are working hard to raise awareness on the poor living and working conditions of the estimated 200,000 migrant domestic workers and to support those of them who are victims of abuse in Lebanon.

Since the early 90s, an increasing number of women from countries including Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Ethiopia temporarily work in Lebanon - often with the hope of helping their children and families back home.

"Female migrant workers in Lebanon are living without adequate legal rights and are frequent victims of discrimination and abuse. We are working on several levels to improve their conditions. Through research, public events and media campaigns,

Servant, Daughter or Employee? A Pilot Study on the Attitudes of Lebanese Employers towards Migrant Domestic Workers

As part of the project: “Stop the Exploitation of Migrant Domestic Workers”, in partnership with the Danish Refugee Council and KVINFO, KAFA (enough) Violence and Exploitation, launched a study entitled “Servant, Daughter or Employee? A Pilot Study on the Attitudes of Lebanese Employers towards Migrant Domestic Workers”  under the patronage of His Excellency Minister of Labor Sheikh Boutros Harb. The event took place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Beirut, on Wednesday, June 23rd of 2010.

The Researcher, Dr. Sawsan Abdulrahim presented the findings of the study which unveiled some of the attitudes and practices of Lebanese employers towards migrant domestic workers thought to be normative but which also constitute violations of their human and labor rights. The study did not focus on the severe forms of physical exploitation and violence that many domestic workers suffer, but on other practices and perceptions that enforce employers’

After IndyAct's t-shirts, Kafa's Postcards in support of Migrant Domestic Workers’ rights

Original post here: http://www.kafa.org.lb/News.aspx?Newscode=10

After IndyAct's t-shirts, KAFA is organizing a postcards campaign urging the Ministry of Labor to include MDWs under the Lebanese Labor Law.
The aim of the campaign is that the Minister of Labor will receive thousands of postcards signed by people who refuse the exploitation of migrant domestic workers and call for a positive legal change protecting and guaranteeing MDWs’ rights.
KAFA’s doors are open to receiving people who wish to convey their support of the case by signing the postcards containing the following demands:
- Amend the Labor Law to include domestic workers
- Allow workers a day off and a day out
- Allow workers to change employers without being bound to them
- Monitor the work of MDWs’ recruitment agencies
- Review the unified contract in order for it to be in line with the Labor Law articles, and translate it into the MDWs’ mother languages

Postcards are available at KAFA's office: 8 Badaro St, Komeir Bldg, 1st (Next to the Social Security Building) or you can contact Maya Ammar, maya.ammar@kafa.org.lb

Inside info on Kafa's conference

Yesterday Kafa and the Danish Refugee Council launched their small research report entitled "Servant, daughter or employee?". It is a pilot study on the attitudes of lebanese employers towards migrant domestic workers.

For press coverage in Arabic
For press coverage in English

There were a lot of attendees. The representative of the minister of labor's words were unimpressive. (He was not quoted in the Daily Star, while he was quoted in Al-Akhbar saying that this issue was a priority to the ministry.)


There were a few migrant workers present. On the conference agenda was scheduled a talk by a migrant domestic workers, but she did not show up.

It is worth noting that Kafa's first issue of their MDW newsletter is really good. It includes the standard contract, raises issues at stake and negative issues in the contract, and includes important contact info. It is out in several languages in addition to English and Arabic.

Coverage and photos by Farah from http://www.nasawiya.org/