Kurdistan
Housekeepers Ifa (left) and Mastiri (right) near the Sherawa chekpoint on the Kirkuk-Erbil road on October 29, 2023. Photo: Rudaw/screengrab
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Two Indonesian housekeepers employed in Erbil spent nearly two months on the streets after running away from a house they were working at after being allegedly abused by the owner. The house owner denied the allegations and accused the housekeepers of theft.
After running away from the house and trying to leave Erbil, the housekeepers, Ifa and Mastiri, got stuck in the Sherawa checkpoint on the main road between Erbil and Kirkuk, as they had no passports or other forms of identification in their possession.
They would sleep on the cold streets near the checkpoints for nearly 50 days, with the exception of some evenings where a nearby hotel or residents of the area would allow them to spend the night at their place.
Speaking to Rudaw in a broken Arabic, Ifa accused the owner of the house she was working for of trying to harass her, but did not elaborate.
“He grabbed me from the back. He entered my bedroom. I got up and left. I did not want any problems,” said Ifa, noting that they have both worked in Erbil for two years without any issues.
“My contract is over. I want to go,” she added.
The housekeepers repeatedly called on the Indonesian embassy in Baghdad to come to their aid, reiterating over and over that they “just want to go back to Indonesia.”
“Help me. Please, help me,” Mastiri, the other housekeeper, cried repeatedly.
Ali Sherawayi, who lives near the checkpoint, said that he is concerned about the housekeepers’ situation on the streets, and claimed that he has raised money from the people of the area several times to help Ifa and Mastiri.
“They do not reveal anything about how they were kicked out. All they say is that they want to go back to their own country… They say that a house owner took their passports, phones, and belongings and tore them [passports] apart,” Sherawayi told Rudaw.
“Of course their lives are in danger… They are cold at night. They are hungry,” he added.
The house owner, who spoke to Rudaw on the condition of anonymity, denied the allegations of harassment, and accused the housekeepers of stealing two car keys and around 700,000 dinars (approximately 430 dollars) from his house before running away.
He claimed to have evidence incriminating Ifa and Mastiri for the thefts, adding that he has filed complaints with relevant authorities over a month ago.
“They worked in my house for eight months. I have treated them like my own family members. We have not treated them like maids for even a day,” said the house owner, stressing that he has no problems appearing before the court to prove his innocence.
Ali Shangar, lawyer of the housekeeping recruitment agency, said that Ifa and Mastiri had been working in that house for eight months and then left without any notice, adding that they have not reported any problems to the company.
“If they had good intentions, they would leave the house and go to a police station… They have the company business card and phones… They could have call the company, but they did not. They must have had other motives. If they had good intentions they would not have left Erbil,” Shangar told Rudaw.
The lawyer claimed that the housekeepers were seeking to work outside the house for hotels and cafes, which they are not allowed to do under their contracts. He refuted the housekeepers’ claim that they did not know the name of the agency, saying their contract allows them to contact the agency in the case of any discomfort or harassment and ask to be placed in another house.
Shangar added that Ifa and Mastiri still have 16 months left on their contracts, and therefore must be brought before the court and subjected to legal proceedings.
“Around 90 percent of the housekeepers that come here have no problems. The house owners are very good to them, and they are very comfortable,” he stated.
Fareed Ali, head of the Erbil labor directorate, said that there is no need for the housekeepers to ask for help from Baghdad as his directorate and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) stand ready to provide them with assistance.
“We have the foreign workers committee, which is an investigative committee. They bring them to our shelters, where we provide them with sanctuary until the process is completed,” said Ali, adding that the directorate ensures the housekeepers would receive their financial entitlements if proven that they were not granted.
Ifa and Mastiri are currently sheltered at the Erbil labor directorate awaiting further procedures, according to Ali, who stressed that the housekeepers are legally obliged to finish the remainder of their contract before they can return to Indonesia.
The Indonesian embassy in Baghdad told Rudaw that they were not aware of Ifa and Mastiri’s case.
The KRG has acknowledged that human trafficking is a problem within its borders and taken important steps towards combatting the crime, criminalizing it in 2018 and establishing anti-trafficking police units in all four provinces, but trust in the system that is supposed to protect the victim is weak.
Authorities have been known to return foreign workers to their recruitment agencies or employers, even while a criminal investigation is ongoing.
The US State Department in June criticized Iraqi government efforts to identify and protect victims of human trafficking, saying the country does not meet the "minimum standards" of combating the crime.
In addition to receiving low pay and being allowed little to no rest, migrant workers are at times also subjected to abuse, harassment, and even physical violence from the families that employ them.
After running away from the house and trying to leave Erbil, the housekeepers, Ifa and Mastiri, got stuck in the Sherawa checkpoint on the main road between Erbil and Kirkuk, as they had no passports or other forms of identification in their possession.
They would sleep on the cold streets near the checkpoints for nearly 50 days, with the exception of some evenings where a nearby hotel or residents of the area would allow them to spend the night at their place.
Speaking to Rudaw in a broken Arabic, Ifa accused the owner of the house she was working for of trying to harass her, but did not elaborate.
“He grabbed me from the back. He entered my bedroom. I got up and left. I did not want any problems,” said Ifa, noting that they have both worked in Erbil for two years without any issues.
“My contract is over. I want to go,” she added.
The housekeepers repeatedly called on the Indonesian embassy in Baghdad to come to their aid, reiterating over and over that they “just want to go back to Indonesia.”
“Help me. Please, help me,” Mastiri, the other housekeeper, cried repeatedly.
Ali Sherawayi, who lives near the checkpoint, said that he is concerned about the housekeepers’ situation on the streets, and claimed that he has raised money from the people of the area several times to help Ifa and Mastiri.
“They do not reveal anything about how they were kicked out. All they say is that they want to go back to their own country… They say that a house owner took their passports, phones, and belongings and tore them [passports] apart,” Sherawayi told Rudaw.
“Of course their lives are in danger… They are cold at night. They are hungry,” he added.
The house owner, who spoke to Rudaw on the condition of anonymity, denied the allegations of harassment, and accused the housekeepers of stealing two car keys and around 700,000 dinars (approximately 430 dollars) from his house before running away.
He claimed to have evidence incriminating Ifa and Mastiri for the thefts, adding that he has filed complaints with relevant authorities over a month ago.
“They worked in my house for eight months. I have treated them like my own family members. We have not treated them like maids for even a day,” said the house owner, stressing that he has no problems appearing before the court to prove his innocence.
Ali Shangar, lawyer of the housekeeping recruitment agency, said that Ifa and Mastiri had been working in that house for eight months and then left without any notice, adding that they have not reported any problems to the company.
“If they had good intentions, they would leave the house and go to a police station… They have the company business card and phones… They could have call the company, but they did not. They must have had other motives. If they had good intentions they would not have left Erbil,” Shangar told Rudaw.
The lawyer claimed that the housekeepers were seeking to work outside the house for hotels and cafes, which they are not allowed to do under their contracts. He refuted the housekeepers’ claim that they did not know the name of the agency, saying their contract allows them to contact the agency in the case of any discomfort or harassment and ask to be placed in another house.
Shangar added that Ifa and Mastiri still have 16 months left on their contracts, and therefore must be brought before the court and subjected to legal proceedings.
“Around 90 percent of the housekeepers that come here have no problems. The house owners are very good to them, and they are very comfortable,” he stated.
Fareed Ali, head of the Erbil labor directorate, said that there is no need for the housekeepers to ask for help from Baghdad as his directorate and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) stand ready to provide them with assistance.
“We have the foreign workers committee, which is an investigative committee. They bring them to our shelters, where we provide them with sanctuary until the process is completed,” said Ali, adding that the directorate ensures the housekeepers would receive their financial entitlements if proven that they were not granted.
Ifa and Mastiri are currently sheltered at the Erbil labor directorate awaiting further procedures, according to Ali, who stressed that the housekeepers are legally obliged to finish the remainder of their contract before they can return to Indonesia.
The Indonesian embassy in Baghdad told Rudaw that they were not aware of Ifa and Mastiri’s case.
The KRG has acknowledged that human trafficking is a problem within its borders and taken important steps towards combatting the crime, criminalizing it in 2018 and establishing anti-trafficking police units in all four provinces, but trust in the system that is supposed to protect the victim is weak.
Authorities have been known to return foreign workers to their recruitment agencies or employers, even while a criminal investigation is ongoing.
The US State Department in June criticized Iraqi government efforts to identify and protect victims of human trafficking, saying the country does not meet the "minimum standards" of combating the crime.
In addition to receiving low pay and being allowed little to no rest, migrant workers are at times also subjected to abuse, harassment, and even physical violence from the families that employ them.
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