Solving challenges through engagement

It seems gone are the days when ‘free visa’ and run away workers were picked up from places where they illegally work, hailed to a waiting van and headed to the police station. They remain at the detention centre until the right sponsor is contacted; who can come forward at his own convenience, may be days or weeks, while the poor guy is locked in the jail.

Free visa workers are illegals by default. According to Bahrain law, workers are expected to work with their original sponsors. The relations between employer and employee determine the fate of a worker; if things go worse the worker runs away and works illegally. Or buys the visa from middle-men in black market and works for another employer making the worker an illegal free visa worker. 

Despite years of attempts to solve these impasses, the challenges remain as stumbling blocks in reforming the laws governing labour relations between employers and employees in the Kingdom. 

The recent government announcement where workers are allowed to switch jobs gave a partial relief to workers who remained at legal crossroads for the last few years. 

However, a new approach initiated by the Muharraq Police Department that involves engaging the free visa workers through guidance and counseling (DT, April 26, 2017) has received wide public support.  It is an innovative way and the first of its kind in the Kingdom. It is expected to be a panacea for dealing with the problem. 

For the plan to succeed, however, an intensive and aggressive awareness campaign must be carried out to inform the expat community with the help of their respective embassies. 

Most free visa workers avoid talking to police or security agents for fear of being caught and deported. So the campaign must be able to bring a change of attitude of the expat workers. There seems to be a lot of work to do in this endeavor. 

The new initiative is a two way street. First, to help the workers solve their problems, find respective sponsors to amicably settle the differences before they get trapped in a legal limbo.

Second, to ensure the safety of the community against possible crimes that could be committed by illegal workers. Illegal workers can remain unemployed for long time so in an attempt to get ‘fast money’ to cover their expenses or pay loans back home; they may be involved in crimes.   

As Muharraq Governorate Police Director General Brigadier Fawaz Al Hassan put it “The workers have paid to agents by selling their houses and other property to agents and when they arrive in Bahrain they find themselves without work so they are bound to take crime sooner or later.” 

The money they have taken as a loan must be repaid within specified time period and if there is no job, they are bound to take odd jobs, and if this is not available, they will likely commit crimes. 

The handling of the visa system in the wider GCC countries has received criticism from human rights organizations. Nabbing workers and transferring them to immigration officials was the last resort the governments take. However, human rights organizations have never taken into consideration the facts on grounds and leap to condemn the governments. 

The new initiative of providing counseling and guidance to illegal workers may be the kind of treatment the human rights organizations want to see. And it is good to witness that Bahrain finds itself at the forefront of this project.

The move should be encouraged and all our governorates must try the pilot project. The government should also provide frequent amnesty periods where illegal workers are allowed to correct their status and avoid being on the wrong side of the law. 

These measures will strengthen Bahrain’s position as the ‘expat choice of destination’ and with that comes economic development and progress.