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EOHR Issues a Report on the Deteriorating Conditions of the Egyptians Abroad
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22/8/2006
As a part of its continuous monitoring of the conditions of the Egyptians abroad, EOHR has issued on Sunday 20/8/2006 a new report entitled " Rights lost between Domestic and Abroad".
In this report, EOHR reveals the deteriorating conditions suffered by the Egyptian labor abroad. This report is considered the third in a series of reports issued by EOHR. The first report was issued in 1995 and entitled " Egyptians in the Gulf: Captives of the Kafeel System", this report tackled problems and violations suffered by Egyptians in the Gulf region, especially those caused by applying the Kafeel or "supervisor" System. EOHR also issued a report in 2002 entitled " Egyptian Labor in the Gulf: Destination Unknown" which also tackled the violations suffered by Egyptians in the Gulf states.
EOHR's report "Egyptians Abroad: Rights Lost Between Domistic and Abroad" includes three main sections:
One: The Legal Framework of the Egyptian Labors Abroad:
This part tackles the legal framework which regulates the rights of the Egyptian abroad according to the Egyptian Constitution 1971 and Law 111/1983 "Law of Immigration and Egyptians Abroad". In this section, the report draws the attention to the absence of any Articles about the rights of Egyptians abroad in the 1971 Constitution, compared with other constitutions which mentioned the rights of the citizens abroad such as Constitution of Poland 1995, Russian Constitution 1993, Kazakhstan Constitution 1993, Yugoslavian Constitution 1992, Turkish Constitution and the Constitution of Peru 1993.
Two: Violation Suffered by Egyptians Abroad
This section tackles the situations of Egyptians abroad in Arab and non-Arab countries, and the violations they are subjected to, especially those who fall under the Kafeel system, which constitutes a violation to many international human rights documents. There are also other violations such as arbitrary firing, persecution, torture, maltreatment, depriving from traveling, the loss of financial, economic and social rights. In addition to killing, abductions and illegal detention.
Three: Cases of violations to the Egyptians abroad
This section presents a group of cases of violations of the rights of Egyptians abroad monitored by EOHR.
The report is finalized by recommendations as follows:
- abolishing the Kafeel system in the Gulf states which contradicts with international human rights documents such as ICCPR and ICESR, as it constitutes a group of violations to human rights.
- Calling upon the Arab League to draft a treaty to protect the rights of immigrating workers and their families, and drafting bilateral or multilateral treaties between states of origin and destination states which guarantee the protection of the workers and ban mass-firing.
- Establishing a national council for immigrants and Egyptians abroad affairs, to formulate an overview of policies to accomplish such goals.
- The importance of coordination among concerned organs to protect the rights of Egyptian labor, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- Developing the legal framework and procedures to maintain equality and guaranteeing the rights, privileges and duties.
- Enacting the role of Egyptian embassies and consulates abroad to increase the awareness of the Egyptian abroad of the laws and policies of different states , and solving their problems, and establishing a complaint-receiving mechanisms in these embassies.
EOHR also announced at the end of the report that it will address all Arab human rights organizations recently established in Arab countries and inform them with the complaints of the Egyptians in the Gulf region, and to demand their immediate intervention to solve these complaints with their governments.
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