Bruise of Qatar

 In 2010 the FIFA World Cup 2022 was awarded to Qatar. In Qatar there are more than 2 million migrant workers, many of them coming from Nepal and India. Construction workers, domestic workers, drivers, hotel staff, fishermen, … Majority of them have been working in slavery-like conditions and housing in squalid, overcrowded labour camps. Until 2020, under the Kafala system, migrant workers were subject to their sponsor’s approval to go back home or to change jobs, which led to many abuses.

For many years the international labour movement has been campaigning against these practices.

In 2017 an agreement was reached in the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

The State of Qatar agreed to put in place labour reforms to better protect the migrant workers.

GEFONT Nepal, NDWM India, WSM and ACV-CSC BIE are glad to present to you ‘Injury Time – Stories of Migrant Workers in Qatar’. This video documentary, directed by Hom Karki for Katha Nepal, a Nepal based production house which has previously produced the documentary ‘Bruise of Qatar’, tells you the stories of Nepali and Indian workers, looking for a better life beyond the border. 

Avoiding death sentences for two Indian migrant workers in Qatar

C. Rajammal, wife of a migrant worker Chelladurai, urges the state
and central government to help them file
an appeal against the death sentence (Photo: DC)

Alagappa Subramaniam from Selathur Pudukottai district, and Chelladurai Perumal from Virudhunager District are two Tamil Indian migrant workers facing a death sentence  in Qatar, while Sivakumar Arasan from Salem District is facing a life sentence. These three illiterate migrant workers didn't receive any legal support to appeal against their sentence and NDWM findings indicate they were not given a chance to prove their innocence.

The Two Tamils were pronounced guilty on charges of murdering an elderly Qatari woman and were condemned to death by shooting. But then they were not given a chance to appeal against the sentence in a court where they don’t know the language or understand the judicial system. Since, the appeal court in Doha confirmed the death sentence of two; they just have till 31st of July left to appeal in Supreme court. Their fate came to light only when Adv. Suresh Kumar, Nagercoil visited these workers in Qatar to follow up the case and it has received a lot of media attention (links here, here, here, here, here and here).

NDWM kindly requests Chief Minister of Tamilnadu and the Union Government to support the families of the two Tamils who are poor and leading hand to mouth existence by providing legal assistance to the three Tamil men to appeal against the sentence. If timely legal assistance is not provided , then two lives of Tamils is lost by denying them the chance to counter the allegations of murder against them.  It is time the Government steps in to protect the rights of its citizens.

Due to the NDWM lobby with the Tamilnadu Government, they have announced they would release
9.5 lacks INR (around 12.700EUR) for the  legal assistance in Qatar for these victims.

Madras High Court dismisses writ petitions challenging Government Order on Minimum Wages for Garment Workers

The Division Bench upheld the Tamil Nadu government’s writ appeal (WA 867/2015) and dismissed about 550 petitions filed by garment manufacturers to quash the revision in minimum wages for tailoring industry. The Division Bench of the Madras High Court constituting of Justices Ulavadi G. Ramesh and M V Murlidharan decided to uphold the Government Order 59 2D, dated from 3 December 2014.

Earlier in 2005, the government had issued a notification on minimum wage which was not implemented by the garment manufacturers. The manufacturers had gone to court and obtained a stay order in their favour. It had taken a huge effort from GAFWU and trade unions to get all the petitions of the manufacturers dismissed. In 2012, the government once again started the process of revising the minimum wages, and finally notified it by the GO 59 dated 3 December 2014.

The two-member Division Bench in their order held that given the long history of non-payment of minimum wages, an exemplary interest of 6 percent should be paid on the unpaid wages/arrears since December 2014 within a period of two months. Further, the court directed the government and GAFWU to ensure effective implementation of the revised minimum wage and the payment of arrears.

The recent Textile Policy of the Government of India claims to promote both employment and exports. A 6000 crore incentive package has been proposed for this sector. The policy is aimed at deregulating this sector further in terms of statutory obligations of employers towards workers. The government, in fact, is legalizing longer hours of work, non-contribution of employers to statutory PF for new workers, providing tax breaks in the name of employment generation to incentive employers. The protection to workers has virtually been reduced to the protection under minimum wages. In this policy context, the implementation of the revised minimum wages is crucial for over 1 million garment workers, mostly women.

Minimum Wage is our Right - article by NDWM India

In the south of India, in the Gandhipuram area of Pudur–Madurai, there are around 900 families, mostly unorganized workers, such as flower vendors, construction workers, tailors and approximately 200 Domestic workers. Domestic Workers in this area work two to five houses a day. They are underpaid; some of them only receive old clothes or stale food as wages.

In 2003, NDWM-Tamilnadu initiated an empowerment process of Domestic Workers and they started organizing themselves in a Union. These members register and participate in monthly meetings, where they are learn about their rights and collective bargaining. As a result, in 2004, when the bonus for the Depavalli festival was denied to five of them, the Union representatives negotiated with the employers and ensured these workers did receive their bonus. Elected leaders participate in district and state level training and strengthen the Union by ensuring that other Domestic Workers in their area join in union.

Stories from the South: Dhanalakshmi, from AREDS

Dhanalakshmi shared this story with us:
I have been working as a health worker with AREDS for the past 18 years. I have two daughters, one who is twenty years old, named Anuschka, doing her second year MBB and my second daughter is doing tenth standard. My husband works in a trade union sector with AREDS for unorganized workers. I started the work because of the support from my husband. My husband believes that, if you approach things with a positive state of mind, we can change things, we can do great things. That positive energy pushed me to go work in the same field. Now, I work with pregnant women and since I’m happy, I can give words of encouragement to the pregnant women. I believe that if pregnant women receive positive energy and words, they can give birth more easily and to a healthy child. So we should all strive to have positive energy and thoughts. 





I try to ensure continuous follow up and a trust relationship with each family. We’re not there just for one or two months, we follow the same family for over five years. It means we sort of become members of that family. Starting with the pregnant mother, being there for the delivery, to when the child turns five years old, it creates a real bond. 

My first daughter got in the nursing school on merit basis, because of her high marks on the final examination, so she didn’t have to pay admission, but the other expenses for uniforms and study material are still very high. We get some support from AREDS, and we also have some land that we farm. Both our parents have also contributed from their savings.  I’m also a member and the coordinator of a self-help group supported by SWATE, which also promotes the education of the girls of members and provides educational support for higher studies.