Yousif Al-Mehaimeed No one knows why violence among expatriate workers has increased. It has become common to see expats fighting in the street, in some cases with knives and other sharp tools ending with one man killing the other. These expats think that they are living in a jungle and that there are no laws holding them accountable for their actions. Some of them even videotape their fights, post them on social media and get away with it. Dr. Muhammad Al-Sehli, member of the National Society for Human Rights, Makkah branch, blames the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Islamic Affairs for the increasing violence among expatriates. He said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should require foreign missions to educate their nationals about the laws of the Kingdom. Unfortunately, the majority of expatriate workers know little or nothing about the Kingdom's laws. They do not know their duties and rights and what to do and where to go if they are assaulted or threatened by other expatriates. The Ministry of Islamic Affairs should organize courses and seminars for expatriates and educate them about their rights. A video clip showed an expatriate worker beating up a barber because the latter did not cut his hair as he wanted. The whole drama took place in front of a number of expatriate workers who did not seem to care. They just turned on their cell phone cameras and filmed the scene while the barber was crying out and begging for help. One can say that such violence is widespread and that it even exists in Saudi homes. But the percentage is lower than that which takes place among expatriates. We have a large number of non-Saudi workers in our country and most of them are doing menial jobs. Those workers do not know anything about their rights and duties. The least their employers should do is raise their awareness about such issues. I suggest that employers hold workshops and invite human rights experts to talk to workers and explain their rights to them.
