Muscat: Nirmala D`Souza: Another Maid - Another Sad Story
by Daijiworld Media Network
Muscat, Feb 28: In a gap of just a couple of weeks, here comes to light the third instance of domestic help undergoing untold misery at the hands of their employers. These sad stories of domestic workers who are tortured and exploited due to their innocence and vulnerability are a harsh reality.
This time the maid in trouble is in Muscat and has never been allowed to return home for past five years.
The saviours here were the Human Rights Protection Foundation of Udupi led by Ravindranth Shanubhag and P A Hameed of the Youth Action for Understanding (YAFU) in Riyad, the latter also the official correspondent of who is also a Daijiworld in Saudi Arabia.
Both these Human Rights organization have taken up this case strongly and have written request letter to the Indian Embassy in Muscat as well as the Chief Minister of Karnataka, Prime Minister, the External Affairs Minister and many other concerned authorities.
A letter written to the Indian Embassy was also released to Daijiworld and stated thus
Quote:
Our office received a written complaint from Henry D'Souza stating that Nirmala D'Souza (Passport No. B2752698) his wife is not receiving wages nor is allowed to return to India.
Nirmala left for Oman to work as housemaid in the household of her employer A A (complete details of employer is available with Dr Shanubhag and P A Hameed)
She was recruited by an agency from Mumbai and left to Muscat on April 27, 2002. Henry, her husband has received only 2 letters from her ever since. The last letter from her is dated July 3,2003.
Her last telephone call was on Friday, February 2, 2007. In her call she said that she is being repeatedly assured that she would be allowed to return home. However the employers are not keeping up to their words.
She has to make calls to India without the knowledge of her employers. She used to call from public booths when she went out to dump garbage. The numbers of the booths from where she called are as follows.
0096824709, 0096824811, 0096824818
The only remittance Henry received from her in the course of 5 years of employment is only Rs 40,000/- Nirmala has often complained over phone and through letters that she was not being paid wages. She was also confined forcibly indoors by her employers. Whenever the household went out of station, they used to lock her up in for days together.
Nirmala has expressed great anguish at being confined in a household without any personal freedom. She has been pleading over phone to get herself released from her employers' clutches at the earliest.
Henry D'Souza is from a poor background with no education"
Unquote:
With no response received to the first letter to the Embassy, Dr Shanubhag has sent a reminder to the Embassy
Daijiworld requests all concerned community organisations in Oman to rescue Nirmala D`Souza and arrange for her safe return to her home town.
Those willing to support this cause are requested to contact the following persons:
Dr Ravindranath Shanubagh can be contacted at +91 9845935490
Hameed P A can be contacted at + 966-501506843
or email - rescue@daijiworld.com
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