Detainees at Shumaisy Deportation Center here are defying all hardships to keep alive the true spirit of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. Challenges for them are many. The topmost among them preoccupying their minds is uncertainty over getting back to their home countries. It is, of course, a cause of tremendous mental stress. Detainees, speaking from inside the deportation center, told Saudi Gazette that lack of sleep and unhealthy living conditions – largely due to overcrowding of cells and filthy toilets – have exposed them to infectious diseases such as chicken pox and influenza. Another challenge the inmates were facing was infrequent opportunities to take a proper bath. Despite all the hardships, the detainees have never abandoned fasting in Ramadan or gave up the congregation Taraweeh prayers. They offer the congregation prayer in groups of 10 and try to finish it as early as possible because of the overcrowded cells. Food served in the deportation has never been a problem, said Muhammad Ashraf (32), an Indian Kashmiri laborer detained after his sponsor reported him as absconding. He has been waiting to be deported for the past three months. Ashraf said being a Kashmiri he has several documents to furnish to prove his Indian nationality and to get the emergency certificate (out-pass) issued by the Indian Embassy that would enable him to go home. “I am living in uncertainty counting each day despite completing my documentation of required papers,” he said. He said the Kashmiris, because of the sensitivity in the Indian state, have many challenges before finally be able to prove their Indian identity. There are around 15 to 20 Kashmiris, waiting for deportation for the past four to eight months. Some were reported absconding by their employers and others arrested for overstaying in the Kingdom, he said. “We never allow the uncertainty and enduring circumstances at the deportation center overcome our will and spirit of Ramadan,” he said. Precautionary measures Ashraf said inmates have started taking precautions not to contract chicken pox and flu virus, whose number is growing in the cell. Those suffering from chicken pox, he added, have been confined in a corner of the cell. However for Abdulwahab Alauddin (55), a diabetic truck driver from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, problems are compounded since he also suffers from high blood pressure and cholesterol. It requires him to be on a special diet that is low in fat and sugar. Alauddin, arrested on charges of helping two runaway workers a ride in his truck, said he seldom could eat the food served at the deportation center. He said at sahoor time Saudi kabsa dish of rice and chicken is served while at iftar laban, juices and other snacks and qaboos (Arabic bread) and curry are given to the inmates. “I am fasting and usually avoid even taking chicken for fear of contracting chicken pox,” he said adding that another challenge for the inmates is that they are also infested with head and body lice. A father of four grown-up children Alauddin said despite his poor health he has been fasting and seeking help from God to get him out of the present trouble. He said the police fined him SR20,000 for illegally transporting the runaway workers. “My sponsor is refusing to resolve the case because of the huge penalty amount. Now I am at mercy of the authorities to pardon me before being deported,” he said. A majority of the detainees are workers reported by the sponsors as absconding (Uroob), a violation of employment contract, expired Iqama (residence permit), Umrah visa violators and those caught in the labor dispute with the sponsors. There are also those who have landed here for demanding vacation or an exit-only visa and end-of-service benefits from their sponsors, several detainees alleged. The expatriates now waiting deportation were of different nationalities including Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indonesian and Filipino. They have been confined for a duration ranging from two months to over one year and still waiting because of the delay in processing of documents.
