Sickly 23 Year Old Kenyan Tells Of Her Brush With Slavery In Saudi Arabia

A 23 year old woman from Kenya has recounted some of the terrible conditions she faced after falling ill on the job in Saudi Arabia. 
Rosebella Akoth began to fall ill while working, suffering from kidney issues that left her severely weakened. Her feet began to swell so bad from the condition that it began to be very difficult for her to work.
Instead of pitying her, the employers she was working with gave her more work and accused her of laziness.

“I used to have intense back aches and my feet would swell, but the people I was working for told me I was lazy and gave me more work to do,” remembered Akoth to The Standard.

She was then transferred to another family where her working conditions did not improve. She escaped and was forced into homelessness for weeks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
After weeks outside she got lucky, bumping into a Kenyan woman who brought her to the World Welfare Association. The group arranged for her to return safely to Kenya.
Now back to her home in Ugenya, Siaya county, Akoth still needs frequent medical care.
Akoth’s story gives insight into how the recruiters take advantage of people in Kenya to come and work in Saudi Arabia and other Middle-Eastern countries.

Akoth explains: “When an agent based in Kisumu recruited me, I was desperate. She told me to ignore the horror stories that had been highlighted by the media and assured me that she was taking me to a reliable employer.”

Kenyan migrant workers have been frequently victimised upon arriving overseas in the Middle East.
In preparation for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, migrant workers often face overwork and difficult conditions. A Kenyan worker told the BBC that workers are staying in poor conditions and are earning less than what they were promised. He says workers sleep up to five people in a room and he had been forced to work as an electrician, even though he has no training.



Source: Standard Digital, Tuko.co.ke