February 28, 2004. Keralamonitor.com
KM Special Report.
Indian Ambassador prevents Social organizations from giving food and water to stranded Indian Workers.
Workers Cant Drink Embassy Water ; Have to leave with just a ticket: Kairali Channel Workers Channel hails the Ambassador for Sending Workers Home Empty Handed
MUSCAT - The fate of 55 Indian workers who are stranded in front of the Indian Embassy building here continues to remain bleak, as the embassy officials have failed to get any of their problems resolved. According to the workers, instead of lending a helping hand to the poor workers who are facing a grave situation in foreign country, the senior Indian embassy officials including the high profile Indian ambassador Talmiz Ahmed are allegedly acting in an inhuman and barbarian manner by preventing them from taking even a drop of drinking water from the embassy premises and not allowing social organizations to giving food, water or other support to them. Even though the embassy collects a fund from the public for workers welfare, nothing is given to the Indian workers. Workers also alleged that the senior embassy officials called the police to harass workers. But even the police officials felt sympathy for them. Workers allege that such actions are being taken by the embassy to help the local employer avoid payment of salary.
"We are living here for the last twenty two days and the Indian Ambassador Talmiz Ahmed has not even bothered to meet us directly. He does not even bother to look at the workers who stand in queue in front of the embassy entrance with folded hands. Every day we stand at the entrance with great expectation, thinking that the ambassador will show some mercy or even give us at least a sympathetic look. He is yet to give us a sympathetic look, let alone solve our problems," says one of the agitated workers. "In fact the Indian embassy officials have done more harm to us in 22 days more than what our Arab sponsor did for several years," said workers. Now they are asking us to leave with a free ticket given by the Ministry of National Economy and passport. Apparently the company sponsor has not bothered to respect workers right and the Indian embassy seems to be impotent to do anything to do justice to the workers.
Paradoxically enough, a senior Indian Embassy official from the Indian Foreign Service has interfered to stop at least three socially concerned charitable organizations and philanthropists from giving food or water to the workers who are living in utter poverty. "We are given food by a Gujarathi businessman who was willing to feed the workers for any number of days. However, the senior Indian Embassy official intervened personally and made him stop providing food and water to the workers," they said. "it is too hot outside the embassy premises, but we are not allowed to take even a bottle of water from the Indian embassy building. How can they stop others also from giving us water or food? ," asks another agitated worker.
It may be recalled that the Indian Ambassador Talmiz Ahmed hurriedly convened a press conference recently and announced that certain companies are denying workers salary for several months. However, the same ambassador who made a public appeal to Indian workers to report any cases of salary non-payment for three months has not met the workers who are sitting just behind his cabin for the last twenty-two days. "We gave our complaint to the Indian Embassy official who visited Salalah four months back. The Indian Embassy Official in Salalah faxed our complaint four times to the Indian Embassy, Muscat. However, they are asking other workers also to send their complaints," workers said. One
The media reports also project the embassy officials as saints who are working everything possible to solve the problems. "What support are we getting from the Indian embassy? Instead of making arrangements to recover money from the employer, the embassy officials are asking us to leave the country in a hurry with a free ticket given by the Ministry of National Economy, Oman and their passport. What about our payment for several months," ask the workers. "It is true that the Indian Ambassador has not met the workers directly. The lower level officials in the embassy are not allowing the workers to meet him directly," they said.
They are also agitated about various news reports in the visual and print media, which glorified the Indian Ambassador and Embassy officials. "We were shocked to hear a Kairali channel report on February 21, 2004 that the Indian Embassy officials managed to solve all the problems facing 55 stranded workers and that they would be send back soon. However, the reality is that the embassy officials are not allowing us even to take a bottle of drinking water from the embassy premises," workers said.
"Even though Asianet representatives come here once in a while and inquire about our situation, the channel has not reported anything about our case so far. One Malayalam newspaper also published reports praising the Indian Embassy officials and the ambassador. The fact is that our problems remain as earlier, they said. Kairali representative in Muscat P M Jabir said the report was based on Indian Embassy briefing and further reports clarified the position."Kairali channel is a peoples channel and we did not know that it is to praise an ambassador or the embassy official who work against us in an inhuman manner," added workers.
Thanks to earlier Kairali and Madhyama reports, a number of social organizations and philanthropists are coming forward with food and water. However, Bhupender Singh, a senior diplomat has prevented some social organizations from distribution of food and water saying that the workers will not leave the embassy premises, if they are given food and shelter. One charitable organization in Muscat wanted to help the workers by giving them food and other support, the Consul General has warned them that they will be held responsible, if the workers continue to stay there.
Elite Ambassador - off the people; Buy the People - Far the people
India is a country of Daridranarayanans (poor people) and the diplomatic missions abroad are expected to work for them. However, the Indian Ambaassador in Muscat seems to be a different man altogether. Almost all the former ambassadors used to invite elite and ordinary members of the Indian community to participate in the customary republic day celeberations held in India House, a palace like villa.
However, various community leaders in Muscat including leaders of various linguistic wings representing various sections of 3 lakh Indians living here had a taste of the elite ambassador. While they used to get an official invitation to attend the Republic Day functions, this Republic Day celebrations in India House was an exclusive affair for the dignitaries, business tycoons and the so called elite. The former ambassador K M Meena, who was known as the people's ambassador used to invite many new faces of Indian community to the gathering.
"The conveners of the Kerala and Malayalam Wing of Indian Social Club, which represent the largest expatriate population in the Sultante were not invited to the function," said one of the neglected members. While some of these social leaders grumble about the new ambassador's elitist approach, many of them did not have time to give a decent send off to K M Meena. At least the former ambassador treated them at par with Mohammed Alis or Khimjis. Well, the diplomatic mission of a poor country like India is working with a five star culture. Wine and dine with the elite and business tycoons and neglect the vast majority of Indians who pay their salary. Only an ambassador with false pretensions and ego can afford to neglect 55 workers who have been patiently waiting outside his office in torching heat continuously for 22 days! Never mind, he has called a press conference and made press statements shedding crocodile tears about grave problems faced by Indian workers. Kairali and Asianet Channels are there to praise the ambassador for his great work! (KM Editor)
Indian Worker of MRP commits suicide
Two Indian workers (one Malayali, one from Andhra) have committed suicide in Oman due to labour problems. Twenty five year old Jog Rao from Andhra Pradesh, an employee of MRP ( Mohammed Al Ruzaikhy and Partners Trading and Contracting), Ghala owned by a leading Malayali business family has reportedly committed suicide on February 25, 2002 due to unknown reasons. More
Worker Die in Depression as Company Owners delay and deny Salary for Months
MUSCAT - Fifty years old Rajendran Pillai (from Kottiyam in Kollam Kerala) had a tragic end while sleeping in a make to shift labour camp of Bogest Company in the Ghala Industrial area, Oman. The worker died after serving a company as a mason for nine long years. The death is assumed to be due to a heart attack while he was in deep sleep. Three other workers were also sleeping in the same room. ""Rajendran died sometimes in the night after he went to sleep with mental depression.He has hree girls, two of them married off with the money earned in Gulf," said one of his co-workers.
Sixty Workers Accommodated in a New Posh Villa
MUSCAT - Sixty Workers of Socet Muscat, a group company of Zubair Enterprises, had a sigh of relief when the management offered them a new accommodation with sufficient toilet facilities following a report in keralamonitor.com about their plight. It may be recalled that the Zubair group Company used to huddle sixty workers in a single villa in the Wattaya area. Workers could not attend to call of nature or pass urine peacefully. Keralamonitor.com is still a small medium, but some of our stories are yielding the desired results. That is the greatest recognition. Our journalist friends in the local media shut their eyes and ears towards the grave problems facing the man on street. Thank you Omanforum.com for starting a healthy discussion on the topic- Editor.
Striking Salalah Workers Forcibly Removed from Indian Embassy Premises
Similarly fifty years old Gopala Pillai, another worker of United Contracting Company, Salalah died of cancer in Kerala ten days after he was send home for further treatment. The Sultan Qaboos Hospital diagnosed his disease and recommended further treatment in Kerala. However, the United Contractors was reluctant to send him for treatment as the Indian "manager" and Omani owner considered the diseases theory as "yet another pretext to go home"! Well the Indian worker died ten days after reaching Kerala and his salary is still pending with United Contracting company owned by a big Omani businessman. His hospital bill was paid from his pending salary! Venu Attingal from Trivandrum, like his colleagues, has worked fifteen years had his last vacation four years back.
"My dear father. My mother expired on 30 June 2003. So please come soon. There are lot of problems," wrote Laxman, the young son of an employee of United Contracting Company of Salalah owned by the member of a prestigious Omani family in Dhofar. The local police have forcibly removed around 40 workers of the company who are living in front of the Indian Embassy Muscat. They are apparently public nuisance to the embassy and local authorities. However, the local authorities are not keenly implementing court directives issued against the Omani owner of the construction company. "There is no labour card of visa for the last three years. The company gives fake labour card. Workers are ready to go to the prison because they expect two meals and decent stay inside the jail," said one of them. Abdullah Al Rawas, the company owner is allegedly treating Indian workers like slaves and do not follow court directives to pay workers pending salary. It is a shame that a prestigious family of a great country like the Al Rawas are treating Indian workers like slaves!
Starting from the head of the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) to Oman's former minister of Information hail from this great family. "for the last ten months there is no salary. There is no electricity or water in the workers camp. We are living with candles for the last two years. Apparently the company has enough projects and one Indian manager - Ansari Yadav - is mainly instrumental in harassing innocent workers, they alleged. Any fax or communication from the Indian Embassy Muscat, 1000 kms away from Salalah, is not respected. Even though many workers got favourable verdict from the labour court the Omani owner is not keen to obey it. In order to circumvent the court verdicts, the company has changed its name from United contracting to Autorepairing. While the company owner is living in a posh villa in the VIP area of Salalah, where most of the elite families reside, workers are living in front of the Indian Embassy, spreading their torn clothes and packets in front of the Indian Embassy.
No one to raise workers problem in Parliament now?
Workers of MRB resorted to street demonstration in protest against non- payment of salary for a few months. Last year the leading Kerala politician and Member of Parliament, E Ahmed raised a hue and cry about workers problem in Oman. Now everyone seems to be silent? Is it because they don't want to put pressure on the new Ambassador?
