Aid agencies sound the alarm as Israel's Gaza blockade enters a second month    Asian markets plunge as Trump's global tariff turmoil deepens    Trump's crackdown on university protests is casting a long shadow    Le Pen vows to fight conviction but large-scale protests fail to materialize    Al-Jasser: work is underway to restructure and develop aviation infrastructure    KAU to host Digital Communication Conference in Jeddah from April 29 to May 1    TGA: Riyadh tops with 45% of 290 million orders delivered in 2024    Diriyah to host third IMFC Deputies meeting under Saudi chairmanship    15,135 decisions taken to penalize Saudis and expats for violations    Saudi-European Parliamentary Friendship Committee discusses cooperation during Strasbourg visit    Saudi stock market loses half a trillion riyals, with Aramco's losses amounting to SR340 billion Tariff turmoil rattles Gulf markets    Benzema rescues Al Ittihad with stoppage-time equalizer in thrilling Jeddah Derby    Al Qadsiah and Al Ettifaq share spoils in tense Eastern Derby stalemate    Moussa Diaby praises Al Ittihad's resilience after Jeddah Derby draw "When you can't win, you take a point"    Saudi assistant referee Iman Al Madani joins AFC elite list for 2025    Riyadh Art Week launches with over 50 galleries showcasing global artistic dialogue    Turki Al-Sheikh announces five new Saudi film projects to be produced in Riyadh    Saudi Ministry of Education to showcase innovations at 2025 Geneva International Exhibition    Ed Sheeran weaves Persian music into new song, Azizam    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Screen time in bed linked to insomnia, study finds    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



The unsung heroes among us
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 25 - 11 - 2015

There are many NGOs run by groups of expats, most of whom work on shoestring budgets provided by donations by fellow countrymen. Many among them volunteer their free time to help their fellow nationals in distress. One of the most significant groups are expatriate Indians who usually join or form their own NGOs.
Following the Nitaqat grace period for the correction of worker status, the Indian diplomatic missions made good use of these volunteers to help workers either to correct their status or to help them return home. Through this experience, the Embassy of India in Riyadh realized the value of volunteers and subsequently formed Helpdesk committees to accommodate volunteers in Riyadh, Dammam and Jubail.
The volunteers have to register with the Embassy to help the workers in labor disputes, jail cases or the transport of the dead back to their country. The Embassy provides an authorization to the volunteer to approach the sponsor or the concerned authorities to get justice for workers. The limited Embassy staff simply cannot cope with all the cases in a large country like Saudi Arabia where approximately 3.5 million Indians are working.
The Jubail Helpdesk is one such committee of approximately 40 volunteers from various walks of life. They started in March 2014 with the blessings of the then Ambassador Hamid Ali Rao and the deputy chief of mission Sibi George. They formed separate wings to deal with different issues, such as labor complaints, death cases, jail cases, etc. They have handled hundreds of cases so far.
This committee has brought many labor discrepancies to light including the 17 Indian workers jailed by a Chinese company in Jubail. When the same Chinese company recruited some 91 workers from India and denied them their agreed-upon salary, Jubail Helpdesk came forward and took up their cause and with the support of the Indian Embassy forced the company to give the workers their rights. Now for more than one year those workers have been paid their contractual rights regularly.
An Indian housewife from Surat, Gujarat was murdered by her husband in mid-October of this year in Jubail and the Indian Embassy authorized Jubail Helpdesk volunteers to provide the necessary help to the family of the victim. The family wished to come to Jubail and the NGO helped them to get a visit visa and complete the formalities to allow the family to take the body of the deceased woman home. During their stay, a trip to Makkah and Madinah was arranged by the NGO. Their hotel stay was sponsored by the Flour Arabia Co. in Al-Khobar, where the husband had worked.
When a desperate Tamil Nadu native housemaid Stella Manikandan threw a message in a plastic water bottle through her window in the house in which she was locked up in Fanateer in Jubail, the Indian worker who found the message alerted the Jubail Helpdesk. The woman was asking for help to have her plight made public to the authorities and to inform her husband back home of her situation. The volunteers took the case to the police station and forced the sponsor to send her home.
When Kerala native Raveendran Nair was put behind bars by his company because of the disappearance of power cables at his place of work, Helpdesk volunteers investigated the details and proved his innocence. Accordingly, Raveendran Nair was freed and paid all his salary and benefits.
When Ali Hussain Miyan died in June 2014, his body remained in a morgue in Al-Ahsa for months as he was one of 14 workers who had filed a labor case against his company. Jubail Helpdesk cut through the bureaucratic jumble and brought the issue to light and the authorities forced the sponsor to send the body to India immediately.
Jubail every so often is highlighted in the news due to the large number of Indian fishermen working the coast of Jubail who inadvertently drift into the territorial waters of other neighboring countries and are then detained and put in jail. The Jubail HelpDesk has been instrumental in their release.
This NGO like some others performs its work in the service of others without any expectations. They do it with goodwill, and it is this kind of goodwill that all of us should exercise in the service of humanity.
— The author can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena


Clic here to read the story from its source.