LABOUR UNREST IN KUWAIT.
These days in Kuwait lot of problems are going on between Bangladeshi Cleaners and their employers who accuse their employers of giving them poor salaries and that also not in time. The Cleaners have organised Strikes and created law and order situation. Many of them were arrested and deported to Bangladesh. These deportees were in hundreds of hundreds.
On this topic earlier I wrote in the local Kuwait Times and its copy reproduced in this forum. Again on third of this month I wrote in Kuwait Times as reproduced herebelow:
Where are all the human rights activities gone now leaving the onus on Kuwait Times to fight so forefully against those who are trampling under their feet human rights of poor expatriates? It is sad that many of the Cleaners were deported for crossing the permissible line of control but even then they stand to lose nothing much because they were earning nothing much either.
During my last so many years of stay in Kuwait I have been a witness to many of the tragedies happening in Kuwait. First was the collapse of Soukh Mannakh in eighties, the second was the most tragic event, that is, the vicious invasion of Kuwait and the third is the recent problem of Cleaners. The problem of the staff of cleaning companies was expected because they were over exploited, at home by the recruiting agents and again in Kuwait by their employers. Their Embassy should also accept a small percentage of the blame for not educating their manpower properly back at home on the genuine happenings in Kuwait.
When nothing worked in their favour, the proletarians who were hungry for food and thirsty for water finally took to the streets in accordance with Karl Marx in Das Kapital which tells the exploited farmers to “take up your Sickles and start your fight for your rights. In this fight you stand to lose nothing. However, if at all you lose, you will lose only your Sickles but if you win, you will win your full rights”.
The striking Cleaners must have never known who is Karl Marx and what is Das Kapital but thru their own ingenuity they followed Karl Marx in some way or the other. In their recent awakening in support of their rights they lost nothing in losing their jobs and facing the deportation but only their meager monthly income of 18 Kuwaiti Dinars (about 3 thousand Indian Rupees) which is as good as nothing in this rich country. However, by creating their awakening they made their colleagues to gain more income, as per reports KD 40/- per month which though peanuts in the present living standard of Kuwait but the difference between 18 and 40 KD is very big. It is a real victory for them in their fight for their rights.
Kudos to Kuwait Times for solidly standing behind the heavily exploited expatriate Cleaners in getting them some justice though it was not a full fledged justice. Kuwait Times has created history in late seventies, somewhere in 1977 when it stood by the poor expatriate tenants when they were exorbitantly taxed by the sudden heavy increase in Flats Rent in Kuwait by the greedy Kuwaiti buildings owners. The pictorial front page reports appearing in Kuwait Times at that time created chills in the spine of the authorities leading even to suspend Kuwait Times for one full week to prevent further exposure. But Kuwait Times never cared though it faced suspension. In the end victory came for the tenants thru legal way. This is the power of the Press and power of the Pen which is said “mightier than sword”. The power of the Pen created not only havoc but even revolutions. The trend that is set in motion now by Kuwait Times should be carried forward till full victory is gained by the proletarians and all other exploited expatriates.
Though I support proletarians in their battle for their rights but I disagree with the methods of using violence by the Cleaners in their recent strike. They could have easily got what they already got by following peaceful methods and not by burning Tyres, stoning houses and overturning cars. They must know to obey the laws of the country they are working and accordingly they should follow the peaceful methods. It is not necessary to follow only Karl Marx methods to gain their rights. They could easily follow the methods Mahatma Gandhi used against the mighty British colonial power. By following peaceful methods Gandhiji gained full freedom for India. He never used nor advocated violent methods in his campaign to get his rights and demands.
While concluding, I implore upon Kuwait Times to educate the locals to create a good image of them by not exploiting the weaker segments of the expatriate labour force. Kuwait needs more support and goodwill from all the communities and nationalities. During the invasion of Kuwait and also after its liberation Bangladesh Government and its people firmly stood by Kuwait. To prevent this region from further falling into the tyrant Saddam Hussein’s hands, Gen. Ershad of Bangladesh sent special military troops to Saudi Arabia to guard and to protect the holy places in Saudi Arabia. Many of the relatives of the exploited and deported Cleaners must have lost their precious lives while protecting this region and also while defusing the Mines in Kuwait put by the retreating defeated Iraqi troops. Their sacrifices in protecting this region and particularly this country should be appreciated and rewarded by being considerate to their Cleaning staff. The way they work in Kuwait for keeping this country clean nobody else will work. By not renewing their Iqamas(Residence Permits) they will not be much sufferers because they are accustomed to “living under poverty line” back home. But will Kuwait manage with substitute manpower from some other countries with the pittance of salaries like the current Cleaners are getting? Is there any country in the world ready to send its manpower for KD 18/- salary per month and with innumerable restrictions? I doubt.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Safat, Kuwait.
