Archive: saudi arabia
2nd December 2013
The Saudi Gazette published a disturbing article the other day in which a number of Saudis talked about relations with their foreign servants – and defended what amounts to slavery.
The article highlights one of the many iniquities in Saudi Arabia's "sponsorship" system for employing migrant… Read more
1st December 2013
For the last month or so, as regular readers will know, I have been following the story of Saudi Arabia's crackdown on migrants. I have spent hours gathering information from open sources in an effort to get a clear picture of what is happening – and this is my fourteenth blog post on the subject… Read more
28th November 2013
Saudi Arabia has deported 71,118 “illegal” foreigners since its crackdown on migrant workers began on November 4, according to latest figures from the kingdom’s Passport Directorate.
This total is likely to continue increasing because of delays in processing deportations since many of the arrested… Read more
27th November 2013
Saudi Arabia's crackdown on migrant workers continues to stir up racist sentiment, and the latest example is a column in Arab News headed "Say no to expats calling for Saudi citizenship".
The writer, Abdulrahman al-Zuhayyan, trots out a familiar collection of xenophobic prejudices: foreigners in… Read more
19th November 2013
Sometime in the future, when historians come to analyse the fall of the Saudi monarchy, the “regularisation” programme of 2013 is likely be seen as one of its causes.
“Regularisation” (a euphemism for expelling migrant workers in their tens of thousands) was meant to end the practice of illegally… Read more
14th November 2013
A satirical song about the Saudi crackdown on migrants has become a hit on YouTube. “Ja Jawazat” – depicting Asians without passports – has been viewed more than a million times since it was posted in June.
Saudi Arabia’s ill-conceived crackdown on migrants continues to take its toll, and one of… Read more
12th November 2013
The Saudi authorities arrested a total of 33,353 “illegal expatriates” and deported 14,304 during the first week of the crackdown against migrants which began on November 4, according to the General Directorate of Prisons.
In Riyadh, some 17,000 “illegal Ethiopians” have surrendered following the… Read more
12th November 2013
Saudi Arabia – once described as "the world's largest women's prison" – has finally won a seat on the UN Human Rights Council.
There's still a slim chance that the kingdom, having been duly elected, will now turn the seat down, as it did last month when elected to the UN Security Council.
In… Read more
10th November 2013
Two people died in Riyadh on Saturday in fights involving foreign migrants, Saudi citizens and police.
The rioting, in the Manfouhah district of the capital – a poor neighbourhood where many East Africans live – was the worst outbreak of violence since the Saudi authorities launched their "all-out… Read more
9th November 2013
Thousands of expatriate taxi drivers in Jeddah have stopped work as result of Saudi Arabia's crackdown on migrant labour. Many have already left the kingdom – never to return – but most are thought to be in hiding for fear of arrest and deportation.
One company manager, Abdullah al-Shehri, told … Read more
ARAB ART ONLINE: Susan Hefuna: Al Sabr Gamil (Patience is Beautiful) 2007. Ink stained on wood 140 x 170 cm. More information | Click to enlarge
