AJMAN — She scrounged for food to feed her penury-stricken sponsor’s family. But now she’s had enough and is telling a shocking tale of abuse and exploitation. Thirty-year-old Allam Baqala claims she was forced to beg for food in the neighbourhood to ensure meals for 12 members of the household. The Ethiopian maid worked for almost a year with a Bedoun (stateless citizen) family in Ajman without a residency visa after she was brought from her country by a recruitment agency in Ajman. Speaking to Khaleej Times, she alleged she was forced to beg for rice, bread and vegetables and was then made to cook for the family. ‘‘My sponsor couldn’t afford to pay my salary and feed the children as only one person was working.”
The mother and children beat when she asked for her pay, or when she refused to beg for food. ‘‘The left me starving for days because they couldn’t afford food even for themselves. One day, I asked the son to give me three dirhams to buy just bread, he agreed under condition to have sex with me. When I refused he tried to rape me, but I told him that I have HIV and so he left me alone.’’
If that torment wasn’t enough, Allam claimed she was locked up in a small room with no furniture. ‘‘I was asked to sift through garbage containers on the street to bring home disposed furniture and mattresses,’’ she alleged.
She alleged her mobile phone was taken away from her, but she managed to make calls using a neighbour’s phone. Later, she got in touch with the agency, asking them to send her home, but the manager allegedly beat her up, put her in a dank and dirty room and fed her stale food.
Concerned about her condition, her brother reportedly arranged $800 for her return. ‘‘But the agency asked me to pay them $600. When I informed them that I wasn’t paid by my sponsor, they didn’t believe me and threatened to kill me. I’m not a runaway maid, I just want to go back home. Starving there is better than being humiliated here.’’
When contacted, the agency manager slammed the phone down on this reporter.
An official from the Ethiopian Embassy, when informed about the case, said agencies supplying maids should ensure the sponsor’s financial situation. ‘‘There are many cases of abuse against maids and many have been sent home without drawing a salary for years,’’ he said. — afkar@khaleejtimes.com
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