The oppressive Kafala system has been so detested by overseas Filipino workers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that when the Saudi government recently announced its abolition, OFWs were euphoric about it. In text messages, in posts on social media, in phone calls and in letters, Saudi OFWs congratulated one another for a hard-won victory even as they conveyed the festive air to their loved ones in the Philippines.
The Kafala system has been the one single fetter that placed foreign workers in Saudi Arabia under the total mercy of their employees. Under the system, workers are bound to surrender their travel documents to their employers immediately upon start of their employment. This arrangement has given employers a wide leeway of oppressive control over workers because no matter what the employers do to them, they cannot complain, much less run away. The scheme has given rise to such extreme cases as maltreatments, severe physical harm, rape and even murder.
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