Filipino journalist Ana P. Santos specializes in migration and has researched the situation of his country’s domestic workers in Europe and the Middle East. His work in Qatar, with support Pulitzer Centerrevealed Cases of Filipino women who immigrated to work mainly as domestic workers And he was imprisoned for having sex outside of marriage.
In Qatar, sex outside of marriage is considered a so-called crime Zina under Islamic law and can be punished with up to seven years in prison. In 2017, the reporter was able to visit some of the women arrested in Qatar, who were relatives from the Philippines, and attended the trial of one of them. According to Santos, during the trial, the woman had to wear a Abaya (a traditional black tunic that covers the whole body) and had no translator. He was convicted of being allowed to enter his girlfriend’s home (where he was employed) for having sex outside of marriage and adultery because he was married in his country of origin.
Does the law apply more strictly to migrants?
The law is a reflection of Middle Eastern society: women are not seen as equals, nor as individuals who can make decisions about their own bodies. I do not criticize Islam! In Qatar, this law applies to the entire population, of which 90% are immigrants. How many are not Muslim? How many do not know this religion?
In addition, Filipino women lack reproductive health knowledge. Birth control is “close your legs” or “pray”. They are very young women, they are leaving the country for the first time, they have no idea about contraception or they are ashamed to use contraception and admit that they have sex, and they feel very alone.
How do women fall into this legal trap?
Any woman could find herself in this situation; This is what I wanted to convey in my works. They meet these men online, sometimes at home [donde están empleadas], others in the mall… but they are being lied to. One Filipina woman met an Egyptian man who was already married online, and then had to marry him when she became pregnant to avoid being arrested. He was taken out of prison to get married, and during the ceremony he did not even look into her eyes.
Qatari authorities also go after the men, but they can get away with it more easily simply because they haven’t gotten pregnant and there’s no evidence they’ve had sex outside of marriage. In addition, on the Internet, they can present a false identity and then they cannot be found. The thing is, they think these women are something they can wear.
Is the situation better for Filipinos who do not work as domestic workers?
The risk is higher for domestic workers, but I met a woman hired by a private company who worked in an office. So I want to emphasize that this can happen to anyone, not just the janitor. He spent three years in prison: he was convicted of having sex outside of marriage and had to spend more time behind bars because he had accumulated debts.
How many Filipino women are convicted of having sex outside of marriage and how many babies are born in prison?
It is difficult to determine the exact number of women and their children. Qatar has stopped reporting cases Zina In 2012, and when these women go back to the Philippines, they lose track, they go back to their provinces of origin, to their villages, to a very conservative rural context. Their children are inevitably different because their parents are not Filipino: they live in shame and their children inherit that shame.
The exploitation and even the death of migrant workers who built infrastructure for the World Cup in Qatar have been condemned. What abuses do workers face?
There are studies that link violence [contra las mujeres] with sporting events at home. This can happen in homes where these women work and their employers think they can do whatever they want. On the other hand, those who work in front of the public are exposed to physical and verbal harassment in a context mixed with the emotions of sports competition and alcohol (forbidden in public).
Have there been cases where domestic workers have been imprisoned and become pregnant after being raped by their employer?
Yes, there have been cases, but I didn’t encounter it while I was in Qatar. They are rare and extreme cases, and in my work I wanted to focus on normal situations in which any woman can find herself.
Could the World Cup be an opportunity to improve the situation of migrant workers in Qatar?
The labor reforms that Qatar has approved are cosmetic, they have done so because of the great pressure they have been under, but what will happen when all the attention to the World Cup is gone? Qatar was very keen to improve its international status with this event, they wanted to gain a reputation as a progressive and developed country, but this should be maintained after the World Cup. Media should be vigilant.
Source: El Diario
