Story of Mrs. Parvathy- a migrant worker who was treated like a slave in Kuwait
- May 27, 2025
- 12:50 pm
After arranging marriage for her 3 children, 45-year-old Parvathy was looking for a way to keep her occupied. On the advice of a friend, working as a domestic helper with reasonable pay in a foreign country seemed a good next step However, she was little prepared for the immensity of the task that awaited her – a 12-roomed house with 8 children of all ages. She alleges that she was made to work 22 hours a day and was even abused by a ten-year-old boy
The seventy days of her employment are akin to modern-day slavery. She was verbally insulted and underfed. Her employer often hurled taunts at her like an ‘Indian mongrel’. She was denied adequate sleep and sometimes had to use the bathroom just to take a quick nap. Her passport was forcibly taken away from her and so was her mobile phone. An increasingly common trend, the rules of agreement were not followed by the employer and she was not issued a mandatory ID card. Without a passport or an ID card, approaching the local police was out of the question too
Being a former party worker of the MDMK in Pondicherry, she initially stood up to her employers and demanded her rights. But when she broke her ankles as her legs caved under the weight of a 50-kg sack of rice and she was not given medical attention, she began to threaten her employers with suicide. At long last, they allowed her to contact her family in India to make arrangements for her return. They didn’t let her go easily and not only denied her her salary but forced her to pay Rs.67,000 for breaking her contract.
70 days a slave, she reached Chennai. On her return, she informed the authorities that there were hundreds like her lacking the monetary means to arrange for their return. Through the NDWM, she has complained with the Ministry of Overseas Affairs and hopes to receive her due compensation. Only time will tell whether the system is beginning to grow more empathetic to her plight, and that of so many more just like her