Do Gulf Arabs Value Profits over People - Research Paper Example

? Do Gulf Arabs Value Profits over People? Introduction The Gulf Arabs value profits over people. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is comprised of six members; Qatar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Collectively, these six Gulf States accommodate 35 million people including 17 million expatriates. The migrant workers do not only come from the developed countries but also they travel from the developing countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan and India. However, the research indicates the issues of forced labor, economic exploitation and other forms of confiscation of human rights are common in the Gulf States. Many authors believe that the Kafala sponsorship system serves as the main source of exploitation. This system enables the affluent Arabs to use their authority to gain maximum benefits from the migrant workers. Under this system, recruitment and selection process is normally conducted in the home country of migrant workers. The agents remain in constant touch with the Arabs and they provide them employment details and terms and conditions to the agents. The Kafala system enables the sponsor to impose his own determined terms and conditions and employment provisions to the migrant workers who pay a considerable amount of money to the agents in their native country in order to gain access in the Gulf countries. There are numerous incidents indicate that the Kafeel even do not provide them basic employment conditions and standardized wages, salaries, bonuses and other benefits to the migrant workers. As the migrant workers know the consequences if they do not accept the harsh employment terms and conditions, they become an easy prey for the Gulf Arabs who treat them as their slaves and give the inadequate employment facilities. Thesis Statement The research indicates that the Gulf Arabs value profits over people. Paper objective Highlighting the issues of economic exploitation commonly found in the Middle East Providing authentic and reliable reasons to justify that the Gulf Arabs value profits over people. Research Questions How the Gulf Arabs exploit the expatriates? Do the Gulf Arabs value profits over people? Literature Review Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have the highest percentage of migrant workers (Sonmez et al., 2011, p.1).The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)’s members are Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and the UAE and there are 35 million people living in the GCC countries; out of which 17 million are expatriates. According to International Labor Organization (ILO) and Human Rights Watch (HRW), about half of the UAE’s 4 million residents served in the Dubai’s construction sector and 95 percent of the UAE’s workforce are contributed by the migrant workers. As a result, the UAE has become a hub for the migrant workers coming not only from developing but also from developed countries as well. Large numbers of Western expatriates come to the UAE. The main reasons include tax-free salaries, perks and benefits. These perks and benefits are the results of the economic growth and development that has led to a substantial boom in the UAE’s sex; girls and women are illegally trafficked while others find money and charm in the life style of the UAE. The forced labor and the Kafala sponsorship system The GCC countries do not offer free labor mobility. The migrant workers are disallowed to offer their services to the businesses in the GCC countries. Recruitment and selection process do not take place in the GCC countries but the migrant workers’ home country facilitates the process of selection and recruitment. As soon as workers obtain a work permit and a work contract for residence and entry, they become contractually tied to sponsors living in the GCC countries. The Kafala system is that guest-workers’ passports are held by the employer- sponsor, known as Kafeel (Gibney and Lansen, 2005 p. 407). This system can be identified as the modern manifestation of slavery (Varia, 2008, p.26). The kafala system has been termed as a system of exploitation (Genova and Peutz, 2010 p. 211) Moreover, the danger of Kafala system is that it largely remain open to abuse and exploitation. If the permits are not renewed by the sponsor, the migrant worker becomes an illegal and liable to prosecution. This system of exploitation is largely limited to the migrant workers and there is little evidence, indicating that the non-migrant workers are exploited and prosecuted in that way. The causes of migration are sought in terms of ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors (Mohammed, p.3). And labor migrants are symbolic markers of even larger issues (Seznec and Kirk, p. 139) the migrant workers are not financially sound. At the same time, the social and living condition of the migrant workers in the Gulf States is not acceptable according to numerous standards (Sabri, 2008 p.146). The migrant workers obtain debt to deposit fees and other transportation expenses for getting work permit in the GCC countries. After entering into the GCC states, they totally rely on the wishes of Kafeel, who can easily exploit them by not giving them their salaries, bonuses and other benefits. Moreover, the migrant workers are fully aware of the consequences as well if they complain against the sponsor, they may lose their source of income and debt trap become a life threatening challenge for them. The migrant workers face the exploitations in the shape of non-renewal of permits, withholding of wages, abusive treatment or sexual harassment. The Kafala system works as keystone in the structural violence against foreign workers in the Gulf States. The confiscation of migrant worker’s passport by the sponsor represents the worst exploitation. This is a gross violation of the human rights of individuals to possess their passport all times. In principle, the government of issuing country owns passport. On the other hand, withholding of passports is carried out in the Gulf States, whether teachers, engineers, skilled or semi-skilled workers (Gibney and Lansen, 2005 p.407). This practice is particularly common for female domestic workers, who are in the most critical and vulnerable position of all the migrant workers working in the Gulf regions. Worst of all, jobs for female migrant workers are considerably concentrated in less regulated sectors of the Gulf economies (International Labor Office, 2007). The GCC hosts about 20-40 percent of women migrant workers coming from different Asian countries (International Labor Office, 2007). Moreover, discrimination also adds fuel to the fire of exploitation of migrant workers in the Gulf region. In this regard, racial, ethnic or religious background provides a basis to exploit the migrant workers. For example, there is more Shia population than the Sunni Muslims in Bahrain and the government of Bahrain is owned by the Sunni Muslims. In the initial phase, they do not provide work permit to the Shia migrant workers even if they extend such permit, the discrimination can further be experienced while working in Bahrain. Methodology Methodology employs two ways to entertain the objectives of this paper. Data gathering and data analysis are used to satisfy the paper requirements. Data gathering provides a method which is used to gather relevant data and information. There are two ways to collect data: Primary method and secondary method. The Primary method enables a researcher to access firsthand information. Surveys, telephonic interviews and face to face interviews are some of the methods which are employed as the primary method. The secondary method is used to access the pre-existing data or information. For example, accessing an online book, journal article or website can be termed as the secondary method. In order to entertain the objectives of this paper, the researcher has used the secondary method to collect data. Data collection The researcher uses both online and offline resources to satisfy the paper requirements. For the literature review section, the researcher employs reliable online books, journal articles from renowned databases. The researcher prefers to use books and journal articles instead of using websites or website blogs. The websites or website blogs cannot be termed as a reliable source as there is no acceptable goodwill of writer. The findings are collected from the survey results gathered by the Doha Debates (Member of Qatar Foundation). The survey provides comprehensive information about the respondents, their age group, and native country and so on. The survey asks numerous questions relating to the topic and it incorporates the subsequent results obtained from the survey. The important component is that the survey maintains the results on the basis of regions particularly the GCC region. The geographical separation is well-equipped to entertain the required objectives of this paper. Findings Findings indicate that the Gulf Arab value profits over people. In the year of 2008, The Doha Debates (Member of Qatar Foundation) conducted a survey using YouGovSiraj’s regional online panel of 150,000 including respondents. In this survey, a total of 1,119 respondents completed the interview, which was around 5 to 7 minutes long. In the survey, 53 percent of the respondents represented the Gulf region, 20 and 27 percent represent North Africa and Levant. Majority of the respondents age is below 30, which comprises of 57 percent of the entire collection of respondents and 77 percent of the respondents are male and 23 percent female. Out of 1119 respondents, 591, 307 and 221 represent the Gulf region, N. Africa and LEVANT regions respectively. 52% of the Gulf respondents are from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 24, 9, 6, 5, 3 and 1 percent represent the UAE Kuwait, Yemen, Bahrain Qatar and Oman respectively (The Doha Debates, 2008). This indicates that majority of the GCC respondents come from Saudi Arabia and the UAE. In the survey, the researcher intends to focus on the questions and results that are relevant to the Gulf region only. The survey questions and results: Question: In your opinion, do Arabs in the Gulf region value profit over people? Results: Source: The Doha Debates, 2008. The findings indicate that 57 percent respondents believe that the Gulf Arabs value profits over people. And 21 and 23 percent of the respondents opines ‘no’ and ‘not sure’ respectively. This indicates that the ordinary citizens of the Gulf regions particularly from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates believe that the majority of the affluent Arabs who hire migrant workers do not value people but they give more significance to their financial interests and profit motives. The rich Gulf Arabs attach little significance to people and human related values. They do not provide them sufficient and required workplace environment, salaries, perks and benefits which are normally given to the migrant workers. Question two: Which one of the conditions listed below lends MOST support to this notion? Results: Source: The Doha Debates, 2008. Survey Results The majority indicates that poor treatment and pay for foreign workers. 29, 22, 22, 16, 7 and 4 percent represent poor treatment and pay for foreign workers, the accumulation of excessive wealth in the sovereign wealth funds, unequal spread of wealth, poor human rights law, limited investment in health and education and marrying within family to preserve wealth respectively. The majority believes that poor treatment and insufficient pay for foreign workers are the main causes that have enabled the Gulf Arabs to prefer profits over people. The migrant workers represent mostly a vulnerable segment of society from their origin country. In their own country, these workers do not find adequate employment opportunities. In most of the cases, the migrant workers are not properly literate they even do not know how to write their name. Due to these factors, the migrant workers head towards the Gulf region. In the most of Asian countries, it is commonly believed that employment opportunities are abound in the Gulf States; upon their arrival, they would offer a lucrative employment. It is this notion that is being exploited by the prosperous Gulf Arabs. They contact with the local agents in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Philippine and hire inexpensive migrant workers who can be then exploited from every angle with the use of the Kafala system which is mainly functional in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The local workers are considered to be expensive. The research indicates that the local people particularly in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates require more salaries, bonuses, perks and benefits. In addition to that, the Gulf Arabs would not be able to exploit the local workers as they are the natives and have comparatively more access to justice and legal structure. Under such condition, the Gulf Arabs would not be able to confiscate their economic rights they would not be able to harass them and withheld their salaries and other benefits. Question three: How would you describe conditions for expatriate workers in your country of residence? Results Source: The Doha Debates, 2008. Findings The findings reveal startling results. The majority of the respondents believe that they the expatriates are living in the worst conditions. Up to 23 percent of the respondents indicate that the expatriates are living in average conditions. The expatriates are not given their basic rights attached with an employment status. They do not have access to better workplace conditions even employer provided accommodations do not meet the required level of standards. Question Four: In your opinion, which country in the Gulf treats its expatriate workers the worst? (Select one answer only) Results Source: The Doha Debates, 2008 Findings Majority of the respondents are of the view that Saudi Arabia treats its expatriate workers worst. Up to 36 percent of the respondents maintain that the level of exploitation of migrant workers is considered to be highest in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 21, 5, 1 and 1 percent relates to Kuwait, UAE, Qatar and Oman. The UAE is considered to be second Gulf state where expatriate exploitation is common. Moreover 35 percent of total 1119 respondents believe that the Gulf countries are not different but they are same when it comes to exploit the migrant workers. This indicates that there is a general understanding among the Gulf youth that the Arabs regardless of whether they are living in the UAE or in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, they adopt and practice similar strategy towards the migrant workers. They do not have different motives other than serving making and maintaining profits. They do not have much care about expatriates and their basic employment rights and they use the Kafala system for their personal profit motives. There are numerous examples highlight that the Gulf Arabs or the Gulf States value profit over people. For example, the profits are actually the objective of States of the Gulf (Najeeb Al-Nauimi as quoted in the Doha Debates, 2008a). In order to substantiate his argument, he quoted his own assessment about the views of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, after visiting to poverty hit areas, as saying that I, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, will call on the businessmen, call upon charity to provide assistance to these poor people so that their standard of living is improved. On this point, Najeeb Al-Nauimi argued that King Abdullah did not say that we as a state should support our own people instead King Abdullah referred them to the private business sector to come forward and help them out. This point clearly authenticates that the Gulf Arab and Gulf States do not much care about their own people. Conclusion The findings reveal startling results. The survey maintains that the majority of the respondents believe that the Gulf Arabs prefer profits to people. Up to 57 percent of the respondents indicate that the Gulf Arabs value profits over people when they replied to the first question. This indirectly highlights that the migrant workers do not receive adequate employment conditions and they face the issues of economic exploitation and suppression at the hands of the Gulf Arabs. In the second question, the majority of respondents indicate that the migrant workers face poor treatment and poor pay issues. This serves as the main cause behind the issue at discussion. They believe that inadequate pay enables the Gulf Arabs to easily exploit them and impose their own choices and conditions on them. In the fourth question, the respondents maintain that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the country in the Gulf which treats its expatriate workers the worst. The incidents of exploitation occur largely in Saudi Arabia as revealed by the survey. Subsequent to that, the UAE comes after Saudi Arabia when it comes to exploit the foreign workers in their country. Interestingly, around 35 percent of the respondents in the same question indicate that there is no big difference among all the six Gulf States; theirs conduct remain the same for the migrant workers. Works Cited Page Doha Debates, 2008. Do Gulf Arabs value profit over people? Doha Debates Member of Qatar Foundations. Available at: http://clients.squareeye.net/uploads/doha/polling/R__00%20SERIES%205_WEBSITE_03%20Nov%2008_opinion%20poll.pdf accessed on 6 July, 2012. Doha Debates, 2008a. This House believes that Gulf Arabs value profit over people. The Doha Debates. 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