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SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan woman brutally assaulted and treated inhumanely whilst a housemaid in Saudi Arabia

November 24, 2004

SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan woman brutally assaulted and treated inhumanely whilst a housemaid in Saudi Arabia

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

23 November 2004

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UA-160-2004: SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan woman brutally assaulted and treated inhumanely whilst a housemaid in Saudi Arabia

SRI LANKA: Assault; Denial of rights; Denial of access to family
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about a Sri Lankan woman, Dodanwela Welikanda Keerthilatha, who was assaulted and inhumanely treated whilst she was a housemaid in Saudi Arabia for two years since September 2002.

While in Saudi Arabia, Keerthilatha was subjected to severe assault including having acid soaked cloth tied to her head, shoulders and chest, being beaten with a broom stick, and assaulted with wires.  During her stay, she was also forced to work incredibly long hours and was punished if she did not carry out her tasks to the house mistress's approval.  Upon her return to Sri Lanka, Keerthilatha had to undergo hospital treatment as she was found to have a fractured left wrist, swollen legs and feet from broom stick beatings, marks across her body from being hit with wiring and burns to her face and chest from an acid attack. 
 
Keerthilatha lodged an official complaint with the Kandy Police Station on the day she returned to Sri Lanka, 27 October 2004.  However, neither the police nor the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment has taken any action regarding this case. 

Therefore, the AHRC asks you to intervene into this case and ensure justice is brought to Keerthilatha and that those responsible for her cruel, brutal and inhumane treatment are brought before the law for their crimes.  This is yet another case of poor Sri Lankan migrant female workers being sent to the Middle East, only to be abused, tortured, exploited and degraded by the people of their employers' house.

The AHRC asks you to please send a letter, fax, or email to Mr Karunasena Hettiarachchi, President of the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment, and to the other listed relevant authorities involved in this case.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Dodanwela Welikanda Keerthilatha
Current address of the victim: 52/2B Iddhagodella, Mihidumawatte, Gonagaha
Alleged perpetrators: Mohomed Abdullah Al Zeyed, and wife Uja
Place of incident: Residence at Rodney Garden, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. (further data of their address can be found through the Amja Travels and Recruiting Agent)
Period of incident: from 10 September 2002 to 27 October 2004
Recruitment agency used: Amja Travels and Recruitment Agent, K/G/1, Gunasinghapura, Dias Place, Combo 12, Sri Lanka

Case details:

Dodanwela Welikanda Keerthilatha migrated to Saudi Arabia on 10 September 2002 after having received employment as a housemaid through an agency called Amja Travels and Recruiting Agent, K/G/1, Gunasinghapura, Dias Place, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka.

For the first 14 months that Keerthilatha was in Saudi Arabia, her family had no communications with her.  The family tried to contact her through the recruitment agency, but failed to do so.  They made several telephone calls to the house where Keerthilatha was employed, but they were not allowed to speak to her.  They were told each time that they called that Keerthilatha was not at home, or not available.  Not until some time later did they finally make contact with Keerthilatha, at which point Keerthilatha told her family of the hardship she was enduring.

Keerthilatha told her family of the day to day struggles she was living.  She had to rise every morning at 6:00am, and was often forced to work until 4 or 5 o'clock the following morning.  Not until she had finished her entire day's work was she given the one and only meal that her employers provided her for the day.  On several occasions, the mistress of the house, called Uja, would spit in Keerthilatha's food.
Keerthilatha continued to tell her family of the difficulties she faced.  If she did not rise at exactly 6:00am, she would have soapy water poured over her body and was not allowed to change her wet clothes for the entire day.  She worked solidly throughout the entire day, every day, and never had a minute to spare for herself.  Keerthilatha became a prisoner in her employer's home.  They burnt the clothes and a bag that she arrived with when first landing in Saudi Arabia.  She was not allowed to write letters to her family or try and contact them in any other way.  They burnt paper belonging to Keerthilatha which contained telephone numbers of her family back in Sri Lanka. 

There were eight children in the house that Keerthilatha was employed by.  She had to wash and iron all the clothes for the children and the two parents.  The mistress and the eldest daughter, Sara, were very cruel to Keerthilatha, and even the other children, except the youngest, would often hit her.

One day the mistress of the house fabricated a story against Keerthilatha to her husband.  In response, the husband beat Keerthilatha severely.  During that beating, Keerthilatha's head was smashed against a wall, causing a cut to her forehead. However, the mistress and her husband did not provide any medical attention to her.

On another occasion, Keerthilatha was beaten on her back with a broom after she was accused of being too slow at her work.  On yet another day, the mistress of the house accused Keerthilatha of being too slow in washing the clothes.  As punishment, the mistress soaked a cloth in 'Clorox', a strong acidic detergent, and forced Keerthilatha to wrap it around her head, shoulders and chest.   As a result of this, and the strong acid within the detergent, Keerthilatha suffered burns to her face, ears and chest and had blisters form all over her.

This cruel and inhumane treatment occurred for the entire two years that Keerthilatha worked for her employers in Saudi Arabia.  She arrived back in Sri Lanka on 27 October 2004 in a state of unconsciousness, having travelled by aircraft from Saudi Arabia.  Her physical condition on arrival was appalling - she had been assaulted with wires, her left wrist was fractured, her legs and feet were severely swollen from having been hit with a broom stick and her left ear was deformed from the acid attack she had received.  Due to such condition, Keerthilatha underwent treatment at the National Hospital in Kandy.

On 27 October 2004, Keerthilatha lodged a complaint regarding her ordeal with the Kandy Police Station (complaint number GOIB 2357).  However, neither the police nor the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment has taken any action regarding this case. 

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter, fax, or email to Mr Karunasena Hettiarachchi, President of the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment, and to the other listed relevant authorities involved in this case.

Sample letter:

Mr Karunasena Hettiarachchi
President
Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment
No. 61, Isipathana Mawatha
Colombo 05
Sri Lanka

Dear Mr Karunasena Hettiarachchi,

Re: Sri Lankan woman brutally assaulted and treated inhumanely whilst a housemaid in Saudi Arabia

Name of the victim: Dodanwela Welikanda Keerthilatha
Current address of the victim: 52/2B Iddhagodella, Mihidumawatte, Gonagaha
Alleged perpetrators: Mohomed Abdullah Al Zeyed, and wife Uja (their exact residential address can be found through the Amja Travels and Recruiting Agent)
Place of incident: Residence at Rodney Garden, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Period of incident: from 10 September 2002 to 27 October 2004
Recruitment agency used: Amja Travels and Recruitment Agent, K/G/1, Gunasinghapura, Dias Place, Combo 12, Sri Lanka

I write to you to voice my concern regarding the case of Dodanwela Welikanda Keerthilatha. Keerthilatha migrated to Saudi Arabia in 2002 after she had been given employment as a housemaid through an agency called Amja Travels and Recruiting Agent of K/G/1, Gunasinghapura, Dias Place, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka. 

While in Saudi Arabia, Keerthilatha was subject to severe assault including having acid soaked cloth tied to her head, shoulders and chest, being beaten with a broom stick, and assaulted with wires.  During her stay, she was also forced to work incredibly long hours and was punished if she did not carry out her tasks to the house mistresses approval.  Upon her return to Sri Lanka, Keerthilatha had to undergo hospital treatment as she was found to have a fractured left wrist, severely swollen legs and feet from broom stick beatings, marks across her body from being hit with wiring and burns to her face and chest from an acid attack. 
 
Keerthilatha lodged an official complaint with the Kandy Police Station on the day she returned to Sri Lanka, 27 October 2004 (complaint number GOIB 2357).  From the information I have received, I believe this complaint, or at least the details of the complaint, were forwarded to the Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment.  However, I believe that neither the police nor you have taken any action regarding this case. 

I write to you therefore, to ask you to carry out your duties and to investigate this case.  Justice should be brought to the victim and to her employers who are responsible for the cruel, brutal and inhuman treatment inflicted upon Keerthilatha.  This is yet another case of poor Sri Lankan migrant female workers being sent to the Middle East, only to be abused, tortured, exploited and degraded by the people of their employers house.  It is up to authorities, such as you, to bring an end to this practice.

Sincerely yours,



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SEND A LETTER TO:

1. Mr Karunasena Hettiarachchi
President
Sri Lankan Bureau of Foreign Employment
No. 61
Isipathana Mawatha
Colombo 05
Sri Lanka
Tel: 94 11 2 584 770 / 2501 750 / 2592 353 / 2598210-11
Fax: 94 11 2 501751
Email: chmn@slbfe.lk


PLEASE SEND A COPY OF THE LETTER TO:

1. Hon. Minister Athauda Senevirathne
Office of the Foreign Employment & Labour
Labour Secretariat
Naranhepita
Colombo 05
Sri Lanka
Tel: +94 11 2 585 172 / 2591 340
Fax: +94 11 2 588 950

2. Hon. High Commissioner
Saudi Arabian High Commission
No. 39
Sir. Ernest De Silva Mawatha
Colombo 07
Sri Lanka
Tel: +94 11 2 682 087

3. The Ambassador
Sri Lankan Embassy
P.O. Box 94360
Riyadh 11693
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Tel: +966 1454 1745 / 1454 2368

4. Mr. M.H.M. Ismath (recruitment agency in Sri Lanka)
Amja Travels and Recruiting Agent
K/G/1, Gunasinghepura
Dias Place
Colombo 12
Sri Lanka
Tel: +94 11 2 335 657 / 233 6377
Fax: +94 11 2 437 308 / 348 468
Email: amjatravels@itmin.com

5. Mr. Mutha Fill (recruitment agency in Saudi Arabia)
Abdul Assiz Al Hodoif
P.O. Box 456, Riyadh 11351
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Tel: +966 1466 0170
Fax: +966 1466 0260

6. Mr. Nimal Mediwake
Deputy Inspector General
Police Office
Central Province
Kandy
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 81 2234 288 or 2234 4947
Fax: +94 81 2223 227  

7. Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy
Chairperson
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-160-2004
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.