BEIRUT: Lebanon has approved a new work contract allowing foreign domestic workers to resign and keep hold of their own passport, but activists say the exploitative “kafala” system remains in place.
The economic crisis-hit Mediterranean country is home to around 250,000 migrants, mostly women from Africa and Asia, who toil away in people’s homes as housekeepers, carers or nannies.
They are not protected by the country’s labor law, but instead work under a set of laws, policies and customs called kafala repeatedly slammed by rights groups as allowing a wide range of abuse.
Under kafala, meaning “sponsorship” in Arabic, the employer sponsors the worker’s legal immigration status in the country, and the latter cannot resign without their consent or they become undocumented. The law also does not ban withholding a worker’s passport.
All this leaves a worker at the employer’s mercy.
Lebanon’s economic and coronavirus crises have increased the urgency for reform over the past year, with many families now paying their workers in the devaluated local currency, and some not at all.
In recent months, dozens of foreign helpers have been thrown out into the streets without due pay or even their passport, many of them interviewed by AFP.
After the August 4 blast at Beirut port that devastated swathes of the capital and killed more than 190 people, foreign workers have staged rallies outside their consulates appealing to be sent home.
The labor ministry finally this month published a new and revised work contract for domestic workers, the main legal document governing their stay in Lebanon.
Outgoing labor minister Lamia Yammine has said the new contract — to replace a 2009 version — “abolishes the kafala system.”
Campaigners have welcomed the detailed five-page document outlining workers’ rights, but say it is only a beginning.
“It is no doubt a much better version than the older one,” said Amnesty International researcher Diala Haidar. But “a contract alone doesn’t end kafala.”
Most importantly, the new contract gives the workers the right to resign and change employers, and says they can keep their passport.
If their employer withholds their wages or passport, they can immediately quit without notice.
It finally gives the worker the right to the national minimum wage of 675,000 pounds ($450 before the crisis, less than $100 at the black market rate) — albeit allowing the subtraction of an undetermined amount to cover food, board and clothes.
The new contract states workers must be provided with a private, well-ventilated room with a key, an improvement after many women said they were forced to sleep in the living room or on a balcony.
It limits labor to eight hours a day in a six-day week, and details the right to daily rest, paid holidays and sick leave.
But activists warn that all these new provisions will amount to nothing without inspections and unless employers violating the agreement are held accountable.
“In the absence of an enforcement mechanism, this contract will remain ink on paper,” Haidar said.
The old contract, for example, states the worker must receive their wages at the end of the month, but this had not stopped some from kicking out workers without pay.
“We haven’t seen any employers held to account for this breach of the contract,” she said.
A Beirut housewife, who employs a Filipino domestic worker, insisted there are two sides to the story.
“The employer needs to keep at least one document as security... I know some employers are bad but also some employees are ungrateful,” the 59-year-old said, asking not to be named.
Rights groups have documented manifold abuses over the years, including no day off, locking workers inside the house, and physical or sexual assault.
Activists have reported up to two deaths a week.
They have repeatedly called for an end to kafala, which is common in the Middle East and often compared to modern-day slavery.
Zeina Mezher of the International Labour Organization called the new contract “one step in the right direction” toward dismantling kafala.
But it’s just “the first step on a road that is still complicated,” she said.
She said support was needed to ensure a worker could resign without losing their residency permit.
Activists have also called for parliament to amend the labor law to bring all domestic workers — Lebanese and foreign — under its protection, and give them the right to set up unions.
Lebanon’s new domestic worker contract: end to ‘kafala slavery’?
https://arab.news/6wjf4
Lebanon’s new domestic worker contract: end to ‘kafala slavery’?
- Economic crisis-hit Mediterranean country is home to around 250,000 migrants
- Outgoing labor minister Lamia Yammine has said the new contract – to replace a 2009 version – ‘abolishes the kafala system’
With Hezbollah weakened, Lebanon to hold presidential vote
- Lebanon has not had a president for more than 2 years
- Parliamentary vote takes place amidst historic regional shift
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s parliament will try to elect a president on Thursday, with officials seeing better chances of success in a political landscape shaken by Israel’s war with Hezbollah and the toppling of the group’s ally Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria.
The post, reserved for a Maronite Christian in the country’s sectarian power-sharing system, has been vacant since Michel Aoun’s term ended in October, 2023. None of the political groups in the 128-seat parliament have enough seats to impose their choice, and they have so far been unable to agree on a consensus candidate.
The vote marks the first test of Lebanon’s power balance since the Iran-backed Shiite group Hezbollah — which propelled its then Christian ally Aoun to the presidency in 2016 — emerged badly pummelled from the war with Israel.
It takes place against a backdrop of historic change in the wider Middle East, where the Assad-led Syrian state exercised sway over Lebanon for decades, both directly and through allies such as Hezbollah.
Reflecting the shifts, Hezbollah and its ally the Shiite Amal Movement led by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri have dropped their insistence on Suleiman Frangieh, their declared candidate for the last two years, and are ready to go with a less divisive figure, three senior sources familiar with their thinking said.
Candidates in focus include army commander General Joseph Aoun — said by Lebanese politicians to enjoy US approval — Jihad Azour, a senior International Monetary Fund official who formerly served as finance minister, and Maj. Gen. Elias Al-Baysari — head of General Security, a state security agency.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said he felt happy because “God willing, tomorrow we will have a new president,” according to a statement from his office.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot also expressed hope in comments to France Inter radio, saying the election was “a prerequisite for the continuation of this dynamic of peace” and also for Lebanon’s economic and social recovery.
However, two of the sources and an analyst cautioned that it was not yet certain any candidate would be elected. To win, a candidate must secure 86 votes in a first round, or 65 in a second round.
Reflecting Western and regional interest in the vote, French and Saudi envoys met Lebanese politicians in Beirut on Wednesday. Four Lebanese political sources who met the Saudi envoy, Prince Yazid bin Farhan, last week said he spelt out preferred qualifications which signal Saudi support for Aoun.
Saudi Arabia was once a big player in Lebanon, vying with Tehran for influence in Beirut, before seeing its role eclipsed by Iran and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah still seen with sway
Aoun, head of Lebanon’s US-backed army, would still need 86 votes because his election requires a constitutional amendment, as he is a still-serving state employee, Berri has said.
A State Department spokesperson said it was “up to Lebanon to choose its next president, not the United States or any external actor.”
“We have been consistent in our efforts to press Lebanon to elect a new president, which we see as important to strengthening Lebanon’s political institutions,” the spokesperson said.
Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa said last week there was “no veto” on Aoun. But the sources said Hezbollah, designated a terrorist group by the United States, will not support Aoun.
Aoun has a key role in shoring up the ceasefire brokered by Washington and Paris in November. The terms require the Lebanese military to deploy into south Lebanon as Israeli troops and Hezbollah withdraw forces.
Still reeling from a financial collapse in 2019, Lebanon desperately needs foreign aid to rebuild.
Much of the damage is in Shiite majority areas.
Hezbollah, its supply line to Iran severed by Assad’s ousting, has urged Arab and international support for Lebanon.
Nabil Boumonsef, deputy editor-in-chief of Annahar newspaper, was not certain anyone would be elected, even after the major shift in the balance of power in Lebanon, where Hezbollah’s weapons have long been a source of division.
Underlining the influence Hezbollah and Amal still wield, he said the only way a president could be elected would be if they agreed on Aoun or Azour. But if they tried to install their preferred candidate, this would “sever the oxygen from Lebanon.”
Saudi Minister Faisal bin Farhan said last October that Riyadh had never fully disengaged from Lebanon and that outside countries should not tell Lebanese what to do.
Red Cross urges unhindered aid access to flood-hit and freezing Gaza
- IFRC highlighted the deaths of eight newborn babies who had been living in tents without warmth or protection from rain
Geneva: The Red Cross called Wednesday for safe and unhindered access to Gaza to bring desperately needed aid into the war-torn Palestinian territory wracked by hunger and where babies are freezing to death.
Heavy rain and flooding have ravaged the makeshift shelters in Gaza, leaving thousands with up to 30 centimeters of water inside their damaged tents, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said.
The dire weather conditions were “exacerbating the unbearable conditions” in Gaza, it said, pointing out that many families were left “clinging on to survival in makeshift camps, without even the most basic necessities, such as blankets.”
Citing the United Nations, the IFRC highlighted the deaths of eight newborn babies who had been living in tents without warmth or protection from the rain and falling temperatures.
Those deaths “underscore the critical severity of the humanitarian crisis there,” IFRC Secretary-General Jagan Chapagain said in a statement.
“I urgently reiterate my call to grant safe and unhindered access to humanitarians to let them provide life-saving assistance,” he said.
“Without safe access — children will freeze to death. Without safe access — families will starve. Without safe access — humanitarian workers can’t save lives.”
Chapagain issued an “urgent plea to all the parties... to put an end to this human suffering. Now.”
The IFRC said the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) was striving to provide emergency health services and supplies to people in Gaza, with an extra sense of urgency during the cold winter months.
But it warned that “the lack of aid deliveries and access is making providing adequate support all but impossible.”
It also lamented the “continuing attacks on health facilities across the Gaza Strip,” which it said meant people were unable to access the treatment they need.
“In the north of Gaza, there are now no functioning hospitals,” it said.
The IFRC stressed that the closure of the main Rafah border crossing last May had had a dramatic impact on the humanitarian situation, warning that “only a trickle of aid is currently entering Gaza.”
South Syria fighters reluctant to give up weapons: spokesman
- Daraa became known as the birthplace of the Syrian uprising after protests erupted there in 2011 against Assad’s rule
- Southern Operations Room, a coalition of armed groups from the southern province of Daraa formed on December 6 to help topple Assad
Bosra: Fighters in southern Syria who helped topple President Bashar Assad are reluctant to disarm and disband as ordered by the country’s new rulers, their spokesman told AFP.
An Islamist-led offensive ripped through Syria from the north and into Damascus on December 8, bringing to a sudden end five decades of rule by the Assad clan.
On December 25, the country’s new Islamist rulers said they had reached an agreement with rebel groups on their dissolution and integration under the defense ministry.
New leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa said the authorities would “absolutely not allow there to be weapons in the country outside state control.”
But a spokesman for the Southern Operations Room, a coalition of armed groups from the southern province of Daraa formed on December 6 to help topple Assad, said the alliance did not agree.
“We’re not convinced by the idea of dissolving armed groups,” said its spokesman Naseem Abu Orra.
“We’re an organized force in the south... headed by officers who defected” from Assad’s army, he told AFP in Daraa’s town of Bosra.
“We can integrate the defense ministry as a pre-organized entity... We have weapons, heavy equipment,” he said.
Abu Orra said the group, led by local leader Ahmed Al-Awdeh, included thousands of men, without any Islamist affiliation.
Awdeh has good relations with former Assad ally Russia, as well as neighboring Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, sources close to his group said.
Daraa became known as the birthplace of the Syrian uprising after protests erupted there in 2011 against Assad’s rule.
As they spread across the country, government forces cracked down on the demonstrators, triggering defections from the army and one of the deadliest wars of the century.
After losing swathes of territory to rebels and jihadists, Assad’s forces clawed back control of much of the country with the backing of Iran and Russia.
Daraa returned to government control in 2018, but under a deal mediated by Russia, rebels were allowed to keep their weapons and continue to ensure security in their region.
Then, after more than 13 years of civil war that had killed more than half a million people and ravaged the country, everything changed.
In the north of Syria, an Islamist-led rebel coalition called Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) moved rapidly out of its bastion on the Turkish border to seize second city Aleppo from Assad’s forces on December 1.
Its fighters then advanced southwards toward the cities of Hama and Homs on their way to the capital.
“We... decided to begin liberating the south of the country to reach Damascus” from the other direction, Abu Orra said.
He said they elaborated their own military plans in Daraa, but there was “some coordination” with HTS in the north.
Several witnesses have told AFP that they saw Awdeh’s men, recognizable by their headdress typical of southern Syria, posted near the Central Bank and in several neighborhoods in the early hours of December 8.
By then, Assad had already fled the country, former officials have told AFP.
“It was chaos but we were briefly able to take control of vital institutions to ensure their protection,” Abu Orra said.
He said the Southern Operations Room also stood guard outside several embassies, including those of Egypt and Jordan, and led some foreign diplomats to a prominent hotel to ensure their safety.
He said “several foreign countries” had called Awdeh to request his help.
When HTS forces arrived in town at the end of the afternoon, the Southern Operations Room withdrew to Daraa to avoid “chaos or armed clashes,” Abu Orra said.
Two days later, Awdeh met Syria’s new leader Sharaa. But he did not attend the December 25 meeting during which other rebel factions agreed to disband and join a future army.
Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza as US pushes for ceasefire
- US, Qatar, Egypt intensify ceasefire efforts amid ongoing conflict
- Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled, hostages free
CAIRO: Israeli military strikes across Gaza killed at least 22 people on Wednesday, Palestinian medics said, as the US stepped up efforts to overcome sticking points between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire to end the war.
One of the airstrikes killed at least 10 people in a multi-story house in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City on Wednesday, while another killed five in the nearby Zeitoun suburb, medics said.
In Deir Al-Balah city in central Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering, an Israeli airstrike killed three other people.
In Jabalia, where the army has operated for more than three weeks, an Israeli airstrike killed four people, medics said.
On Tuesday, Israeli military strikes killed at least 24 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, medics said, with two airstrikes hitting tent encampments in Mawasi, to the west of the southern city of Khan Younis, killing 18 people. The dead included several women and children.
There was no comment by the Israeli military on those incidents.
As Israeli continued its bombardments, the US, Qatar and Egypt were making the most intensive effort in months to reach a ceasefire, with one source close to the talks saying this was the most serious attempt to reach a deal so far.
The outgoing US administration has called for a final push for a deal before President Joe Biden leaves office, and many in the region view President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20 as an unofficial deadline.
“Things are better than ever before, but there is no deal yet,” the source told Reuters.
But with the clock ticking, both sides accuse the other of blocking a deal by adhering to conditions that have torpedoed all previous peace efforts for more than a year.
On Tuesday, Hamas stood by its demand that it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free. Hamas also said that Trump was rash to say there would be “hell to pay” unless the hostages go free by his inauguration.
Osama Hamdan, an official with the Islamist group, told a news conference in Algiers on Tuesday: “I think the US president must make more disciplined and diplomatic statements.”
Nearly 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s assault on Gaza, according to health officials in the enclave. The assault was launched after Hamas fighters stormed Israeli territory on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
EU could lift some Syria sanctions quickly, says French FM
- Some Syria sanctions ‘could be lifted quickly’: French top diplomat
PARIS: European Union sanctions in Syria that obstruct the delivery of humanitarian aid and hinder the country’s recovery could be lifted swiftly, France’s foreign minister said Wednesday.
The United States on Monday issued a sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months after the end of Bashar Assad’s rule to try to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance.
Speaking to France Inter radio, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the EU could take a similar decision soon without giving precise timing, while adding that lifting more political sanctions would depend on how Syria’s new leadership handled the transition and ensured exclusivity.
“There are other (sanctions), which today hinder access to humanitarian aid, which hinder the recovery of the country. These could be lifted quickly,” said Barrot, who met Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa on Friday with Germany’s foreign minister.
“Finally, there are other sanctions, which we are discussing with our European partners, which could be lifted, but obviously depending on the pace at which our expectations for Syria regarding women and security are taken into account.”
Three European diplomats speaking on condition of anonymity said the EU would seek to agree to lift some sanctions by the time the bloc’s 27 foreign ministers meet in Brussels on Jan. 27.
Two of the diplomats said one aim was to facilitate financial transactions to allow funds to return to the country, ease air transport and lessen sanctions targeting the energy sector to improve power supplies.
Syria suffers from severe power shortages, with state-supplied electricity available two or three hours per day in most areas. The caretaker government says it aims to provide electricity for up to eight hours per day within two months.
The US waivers allow some energy transactions and personal remittances to Syria until July 7, but do not remove any sanctions.
