This is report No. (76) of a series of economic and social rights to be issued by the Land Center that shows the introductory section of the report, the effects of the Euro partnership on the rights of workers in the Arab region and the role of this partnership in raising negative effects on the rights of workers, such as high unemployment and deteriorating public services. Those Euro-Mediterranean policies, which were issued to address that problem with the neighboring countries, showed the increase of the cases of arrest and detention of migrants and their families, drowning and loss of dozens at sea, or kill of dozens at the border.
Section II reviews the most important problems that were published by some Egyptian newspapers during the second half of 2009 on migrant workers, which amounted to (51) news, show deteriorating conditions of migrant workers and arbitrariness of the different blocs of the State to ensure their rights. The report shows the sinking and the loss of dozens of them, while many have been deported migrant after they arrived to the country of dreams. They were arrested and detained in prisons. The report monitors the sinking of 14 Egyptians, (4) from Ethiopia by Egyptian police on the border between Egypt and Israel, and loss of (24) Egyptians while traveling outside the country by sea. Report shows that (733) Egyptian and (3) Iraqis where conned by immigration agents, including (281) Egyptians who have been arrested by police, and the arrest of (120) while returning from Libya, after a police hot pursuit to them there. In addition, there were (1259) foreigners arrested at countries of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Pakistan, Sudan, Ghana, Nigeria, Chad, and a Bengali. Also there were (703) foreigners who have been conned, while (150) African of them were killed or injured. At the same time, (109) Egyptians were deported, including (58) who have Italian citizenship, (45) from Zimbabwe, and (6) from Ukraine. Moreover, (11) Egyptian infants were sent to juvenile centers in Italy because they are minors. Where (38) Eritreans and (3) Ethiopia were deported to Canada after they crossed to Italy coming from Israel. In addition, (120) Egyptian citizens were arrested during the return from Libya. Also, (540) Egyptians were arrested under the claim of smuggling youth to Italy, along with the arrest of (81) unorganized migration broker, while (99) Egyptian, who entered the territorial sea of some countries without their authorization, have been arrested; (64) in Tunisia, (22) in Yemen, and (13) in Libya. (33) Fishermen were kidnapped by pirates in Somalia, where (7) Egyptians were obtained an amnesty from Cyprus, (11) in Yemen, (9) in Saudi Arabia and (45) in Libya of the total of (57) prisoners. Also, there was a deposit of (300) Egyptians in Saudi Arabia and (77), Israel and (55) in Libya, on charges of illegal residence. The report shows that Beheira was largest governorate that witnessed youth immigration illegally, while Beni Suef, Giza, Aswan and Cairo governorates were categorized as the very least that witness young people unregulated immigration and fraud, during the period of writing the report.
This section also shows that the authorities arrested hundreds of migrants. And in some circumstances, there were judicial decision of fining the. Hundreds were arrested, and majority of them were hurled in prisons, in defiance to judicial decisions that acquitted them of charges fabricated by the authorities.
The most important countries for migrants were Israel, Italy and Greece, where the desire of arrested young people in immigration to Israel has reiterated for (17) times, Italy (13) time, Greece (6) times, Libya (5) times, other European countries twice, and each of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Ukraine, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Tunisia, Yemen and Cyprus once. The irregular migration was focused on stations and ports of Egypt and Libya; where the city of Rafah in the southern Sinai witnessed (16) attempts, Alexandria (5) times, and all of port Salloum and Beheira (4) times, Kafr El-Sheikh (3) times, and each of Matrouh and Damietta, Libya twice, Both Ma'adeyya, Beni Suef, Marsa Alam, Aqaba and Syria, and various ports at once.
This section shows that there are also other immigrants than the Egyptians from some African countries, where irregular migrations that included foreigners had reached (19) trip, including a variety of nationalities; Africans, Sri Lankans, Pakistanis, Ethiopians, Eritreans and others.
The report shows the causes of the problems suffered by the Egyptians in the Arab states in Section III. Many of them were conned; they were been falsely accused of being expelled via void contracts of employment, or on the ground of work without guardian, which leads to punishing them by paying fines of violations of residency requirements. In addition, the foreign authorities harass those violators, by imposing criminal penalties against them, claiming that migrants do participate in acts of espionage or carrying out terrorist acts. Some of the reasons of ill-treatment of Egyptian workers are due to harassment of some Arab business owners or the guardian under the pretext of escaping from the guardian, or disagreements with him, or fabricating of charges against workers, like alleging that workers commit harassment against women. In addition to the deteriorating conditions of decent work in most Gulf countries for Egyptian or foreign employment.
The indicators of such problems are the following: conning against (475) young man, alleging that they illegally migrated to Kuwait, (115) to Saudi Arabia, (20) to the UAE, and others, where the numbers were not mention, were alleged to be illegally migrated to the Arabian Gulf States. Sallom port has witnessed the return of (62705) after the application of the law of fees for staying and return in the State of Libya, where (5000) were banned from entering Libya, despite the payment of fees for accommodation.
Moreover, two Egyptians were killed in Libya and one was wounded another, where one of them was committed by an Egyptian citizen. (11) Egyptians have been detained in Saudi Arabia due to a dispute with the sponsor and accusing them of breaking a secret location, and the smuggling of prohibited materials, including a woman accused of hiding the pretext of the important papers. Also, a citizen has been detained in Kuwait under the pretext of work without sponsor, and another one in UAE under the pretext of escaping from the sponsor, while an Egyptian was sentenced to flogging in Saudi Arabia under the pretext of harassing a girl. Moreover, (6) Physicians were detained for the sponsor refusal to return the Egyptian to Egypt, and the arrest of (77) in Israel's prisons. The report has monitored the distress of an Egyptian citizen in Kuwait because of the deterioration of hid conditions and ill treatment by the authorities to the Egyptian workers. Also, (3) Egyptian were shot in Libya and two doctors Saudi Arabia, where (4) Egyptians have died in Jordan, (4) in Saudi Arabia, and one person Algeria, who is suspected of his criminal death. While it was the execution of (3) Egyptians and the postponement of death row in (35) others in state of Libya, and the disappearance of (9) Egyptians in some Arab countries. In addition, (16) Egyptian have been deported from Saudi Arabia due to differences with the sponsor, and the flee of (228) Egyptians from Algeria for the outbreak of lies about the death of members of Algeria in Egypt. In addition, there was a threat to (1500) Egyptians as the delayed their return to work in Algeria, and there are (250000) EGYPTIAN who fear of demobilization, in the UAE. Moreover, there was a seizure of salaries of (9) Egyptian, by Egyptian officials, in Libya, and amnesty for (3) in Amman, after being accused of wrongdoing at work. Egyptians, working abroad, have been affected by the policies of various governments of Arab countries, where Libya was the highest state in which the Egyptians suffered from numerous problems, and complaints of workers that have amounted to 67793 for (18) times, Saudi Arabia (13) times by 156 workers, and (4) times for all of Algeria by 1729 Egyptian workers, Kuwait by 477 Egyptians, while UAE had (3) times by 250,021 Egyptians, and one time in Israel by 77 Egyptians who were affected, one time in Sudan, where 9 Egyptians were affected, 4 Egyptians in Jordan, an 3 Egyptians in Oman. Thus the number of Egyptian workers affected by the policies of Arab governments has reached 320,269 Egyptians.
Reactions of the various Egyptian governmental bodies were the following: negligence, stating that they would work on solving the problem or non-disclosure of details about the reaction.
In the end, the report reviews in its conclusion the manifestations of poor conditions of workers in the Arab countries because of the sponsorship system, in addition to the insults and abuse by the authorities towards the Egyptian workers. Meanwhile, many of the news illustrate the many manifestations of insulting the Egyptians by Arab citizens, particularly in the Gulf. The most notably incident was seizing the monetary dues of Egyptians and fabrication of criminal cases to them, in addition to the careless attitude of the Egyptian government agencies concerned.
The report emphasized that the Arab authorities and some of its citizens have consistently tried to seize the funds of Egyptian workers, by fabricating crimes to them and by forcing them to waive their rights and deportation.
In addition, the report mentioned that many of the problems of Egyptian workers in Israel, particularly within prisons, as Israel fabricating crimes to them and accusing them of spying, in an attempt by the Israeli authorities to pressure the Egyptian government to release the Israelites spies.
Also, the report has monitored many of illegally migrating Egyptian workers' accidents, where some of them had drowned in the Mediterranean, which led to further deterioration of the conditions of migrant workers, whether by loss or detention, deportation or defrauding the victims by gangs and agents of conveyance.
Egyptian authorities continued its random arrest to Egyptian illegal immigrants and other Africans and it continued fabrication of crimes of trade in arms and drugs, in a use of the weapon of security grip to stop the spread of the phenomenon.
The center calls, at the end of the report, upon non-governmental organizations to organize campaigns and providing support for migrant workers and their families to stop the imprisonment, killing, abuse, arrest and detention unlawfully for the migrants, and to compel the Arab, the European and the Egyptian authorities to apply the Convention of rights of migrants to ensure their rights of decent living, decent work, security and life.
For more information, please contact the Center