HYDERABAD: The first response from Haseena Begum after she was reunited with her family in Hyderabad was—“Please do not head to Saudi for a job”.
Speaking further, she said, “I appeal to everyone to learn a lesson from my experience. It is painful to suffer atrocities alone in an alien country, away from your loved ones.”
She heaved a sigh of relief on meeting her dear and near ones here, after having undergone months of torture at the hands of her employer and a month-long imprisonment in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, on alleged false charges.
The 46-year-old was repatriated with the help of Indian Embassy in Riyadh, a day after she was released from a jail in Dammam. “Given the ordeals I underwent in Saudi Arabia, I can say it is a very dangerous country for poor migrants.
There are at least a thousand women like me who had gone there to earn a decent income, but were forced to become bonded labourer and were tortured on protesting. Imagine, I was thrown off a building by Shaman when I tried to escape from captivity and torture.”
Referring to what she experienced during her month-long imprisonment in Dammam 91 jail, she said that the approach of Saudi police towards outsiders is appallingly inhumane.
“Imagine, I was framed on false charges of theft by my employer despite being severely injured. While I was in prison, the police failed to provide me any security. My Kafeel (sponsor) used to come to the police station and threaten me. He even assaulted me at the police station. I thank the Indian Embassy in Riyadh and its officials and Majlis Bachao Tehreek for helping me out of my situation,” she said.
After learning about Haseena’s ordeals on Twitter, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had asked the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia to rescue and repatriate her to India at the earliest. Later, she also appreciated the efforts of the embassy for resolving the issue in 72 hours.