Conclusion: Hope for Rights of Migrant Workers
As a result of the Saudi government’s negligence in caring for foreign nationals, many labor
sending countries, including Indonesia and the Philippines, have implemented new measures to try
and combat the abuses that their citizens face. HRW noted in a 2008 report that while Filipino
domestic migrant workers account for only 10-20 per cent of Philippine nationals in the country,
they account for 90 per cent of the complaints brought to the embassy (HRW, 2008, 113).
Embassies frequently rent out safe houses and remain open late hours and on weekends, knowing
that this is the time when most migrant workers will attempt escape. Although embassies remain
compliant in repatriating their nationals once they have confirmed their citizenship, they are helpless
H UMAN R IGHTS & H UMAN W ELFARE
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in prosecuting abuses. They face mounting pressure from the Saudi government and risk losing
remittances to aid migrant workers who run away.
Positive changes have been made within Saudi Arabia to help migrant workers. In 2009, the
Ministry of Labor announced that after a 5-year study, it recommends that the government adopt a
new system of sponsorship, whereby private recruitment companies will sponsor workers. For
Indonesian workers, this is promising. Private recruitment companies in the country have undergone
a series of reforms through the government that ensure more stability and protection for nationals
living abroad. However, while the move has been a positive one, Saudi Arabia still refuses to
acknowledge equal rights for migrant workers. Until judicial reforms take place, little will change in a
country that relies on their foreign workforce.