{"id":23767,"date":"2024-03-21T14:44:18","date_gmt":"2024-03-21T11:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armlebanon.org\/?p=23767"},"modified":"2024-03-21T14:44:36","modified_gmt":"2024-03-21T11:44:36","slug":"news-report-february-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armlebanon.org\/ar\/news-report-february-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"More Incitement Against, and More Fees for Recruiting Migrant Workers | News Report: February 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"
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More Incitement Against, and More Fees for Recruiting Migrant Workers | News Report: February 2024<\/h2><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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21\/03\/2024<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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News Reports 2024<\/span><\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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News reports in February 2024 highlight more incitement against, more fees for recruiting migrant workers, and concerning cases of abuse and exploitation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Articles and views shared in the News Report do not necessarily represent ARM\u2019s views. Information in these articles has not been fact-checked by ARM and may contain some errors. ARM is simply compiling all news relevant to migrant communities to inform our advocacy efforts and to facilitate the work of organizations that cater to migrant communities.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Domestic Worker and Child Tied Up in an Armed Robbery in Beirut\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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On February 18, 2024, several media outlets reported an armed robbery<\/strong> that took place in Hazmieh, Beirut.<\/span><\/p>

According to the reports, four masked gunmen broke into the residence of “F.S.” through forced entry. The assailants proceeded to tie up the domestic worker employed by FS and hold a young child at gunpoint,<\/strong> reportedly the homeowner\u2019s daughter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

They then robbed a safe containing cash, gold, and documents worth approximately 50,000 US Dollars (USD)<\/strong> before fleeing the scene in a 4×4 vehicle, according to eyewitness accounts.<\/span><\/p>

Shortly after, security forces were present on the scene and filed an investigation, however, additional details about the conditions of the worker, the child, and F.S. remain scarce.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Moreover, certain outlets, such as Kataeb, Lebanon 24, and El-Marada, did not include the domestic worker and the child in their coverage.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Sources:\u00a0<\/b>Kataeb.org<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0Lebanon 24<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0Cedar News<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0Al-Jareeda<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0El-Nashra<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0Beirut 24<\/b><\/a>,\u00a0El-Marada<\/b><\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Lebanese Military Arrest Syrian Refugee: His Disappearance Sparks Fear Over Unlawful Deportation [here]<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Rafaat Falih, a former Assad regime army member and refugee in Lebanon, was arrested on January 10, 2024, at a checkpoint in Tripoli by the Lebanese military intelligence.<\/strong><\/p>

Falih\u2019s arrest has raised serious concerns about his potential extradition to the Assad regime.<\/strong> His whereabouts have been shrouded in contradictory information.<\/strong><\/p>


Despite Lebanon’s non-ratification of the Geneva Refugee Convention, Falih falls under the protection of the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, <\/strong>which Lebanon has ratified.<\/p>

Falih\u2019s family, as well as the legal support team at the Cedar Centre for Legal Studies (CCLS), have been unable to confirm his detention location, with officials providing conflicting reports about his transfer between military agencies and police stations.<\/strong><\/p>

However, on February 6, 2024, Falih\u2019s family learned informally that Falih had been secretly transferred to Syria, specifically, to the notorious Palestine Branch of the Syrian Intelligence.<\/strong><\/p>

The legal team at CCLS has raised the case with the UN Working Group on Enforced Disappearances, the Public Prosecutor of the Cassation Court, and the UNHCR office in Beirut.<\/strong><\/p>

CCLS fears that Falih may have already been unlawfully extradited to Syria,<\/strong> where he could face torture and physical harm.<\/strong><\/p>

This case highlights a concerning trend of unlawful deportations and extraditions from Lebanon to Syria,<\/strong> which violate the UN Convention against Torture ratified by Lebanon.<\/strong><\/p>

CCLS urges authorities to protect Falih, inform his family of his whereabouts, and respect their obligation to human rights conventions.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Fees Rising, Agencies Closing: Recruitment of Migrant Workers in 2024 [here]<\/a> [here]<\/a> [here]<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Multiple media reports are highlighting an increase in fees for the rules and laws regulating the recruitment of migrant workers.<\/strong> <\/span><\/p>

The increase was reported in the 2024 financial budget,<\/strong> which was approved by the Council of Ministers on February 8, 2024.<\/span><\/p>

An article in Al Diyar newspaper highlights the impact of the economic crisis on the recruitment of migrant domestic workers, as well as the impact on the workers themselves.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Many recruitment agencies have closed over the past few years as a result of the economic crisis,<\/strong> according to an internal source in the Ministry of Labor (MoL).<\/span><\/p>

The closings can be cited for two main reasons: the first reason is the decline in demand for live-in domestic workers,<\/strong> which is linked directly to the impact of the economic crisis on employers, and the second reason is \u201cunspecified violations of the law,\u201d<\/strong> which is most likely linked to agencies that severely exploit workers, mostly through human trafficking, or violate the MoL\u2019s regulations regarding fees and registration licenses.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The same source from MoL reported an increase in the work permit fees for domestic workers<\/strong> from 300,000 Lebanese Pounds (LBP) to 6,000,000 LBP, which is equivalent to an increase from 3 US Dollars (USD) to roughly 66 USD (as of the time of writing this report).<\/span><\/p>

This increase was indeed officially reported in the Legal Gazette (Al Jarida Al Rasmieh) on February 15, 2024, under <\/span>Article No. 38<\/a>, Law No. 324<\/a><\/strong> of the 2024 financial budget.<\/span><\/p>

The article also mentions unofficial statistics on the domestic labor market in Lebanon, most notably that 20-30% of Lebanese families hire domestic workers<\/strong> (presumably live-in workers).<\/span><\/p>

As for the conditions of migrant domestic workers in Lebanon, the article confirms that their situation has deteriorated as a result of the economic crisis, citing long working hours, lack of rest days, and violations of their labor rights.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

According to the article, migrant domestic workers mostly work as part-time live-out workers and get paid according to an hourly rate.<\/strong> Al Diyar claims that the employment of live-out workers is often facilitated by recruitment agencies themselves, a practice that the internal source at MoL deemed as \u201cillegal.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Another article published in Al Liwaa newspaper reported on a meeting between the chairman and general manager of the Housing Bank, Antoine Habib,<\/strong> the bank’s legal advisor Malek Arslan,<\/strong> and the Minister of Labor, Mustafa Bayram.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

One item on the agenda of the meeting was the deposit certificates paid to the Housing bank for recruiting migrant workers,<\/strong> which is a permit that employers and recruitment offices must acquire before recruiting migrant workers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

The article vaguely reports on deposit certificates,<\/strong> only stating that the aim behind the meeting was \u201cto implement and update the mechanism for joint cooperation in managing the deposits of these certificates within a new framework that benefits all concerned parties.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

Given the timing of the meeting and the tone of the reporting, we (ARM) speculate that the purpose of the meeting was to adjust the deposit fees according to the 2024 budget.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The Housing Bank, or Banque de l\u2019Habitat, is a Lebanese joint-stock company between the Lebanese Government and the Private Sector (banks, insurance companies, and individual investors). It is one of the stakeholders that financially benefit from the Kafala system, specifically the recruitment of domestic workers.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Recruitment agencies are required to pay 300 million LBP (equivalent of 3,333 USD as of the time of writing this report) to<\/strong> the Housing Bank for a deposit certificate, according to <\/span>Article 19<\/a><\/strong> of the MoL\u2019s <\/span>Resolution No. 41\/1<\/a><\/strong> dated 11\/05\/2022.<\/span>
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These deposit certificates are a strict condition for recruitment agencies registering in the MoL,<\/strong> granting them a permit to acquire pre-approvals and recruit up to 300 migrant domestic workers per year.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The article also states that recruitment agencies must pay 50 million LBP (around 555 USD)<\/strong> for an additional deposit certificate for every 50 additional pre-approval applications workers over the yearly 300 pre-approvals limit.<\/span><\/p>

Nidaa Al Watan reported that the increase in fees from the financial budget for 2024 could potentially bring revenue to the MoL amounting to 400 billion LBP, the equivalent of 4.4 million USD<\/strong> (as of the time of writing this article) for the recruitment fees of migrant domestic workers specifically, and 500 billion LBP, the equivalent of 5.5 million USD<\/strong> for the recruitment fees of migrant workers in general.<\/span><\/p>

You can read more about recruitment regulations on the MoL\u2019s website in both English and Arabic <\/span>\u0647\u0646\u0627<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Gifts, Threats and Warnings: The Suspicious PR Stunts of the Syndicate of Recruitment Agencies in Lebanon [here]<\/a>\u00a0[here]<\/a> \u0648 [here]<\/a><\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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In a symbolic gesture, the Syndicate of Owners of Recruitment Agencies in Lebanon (SORAL) installed a solar energy system<\/strong> for the Ministry of Labor’s (MOL) office in Baalbek.<\/span><\/p>

Minister of Labor Mustafa Bayram received the gift during a ceremony attended by officials and political figures, including the Head of SORAL, Joseph Saliba, and the Mayor of Baalbek Bachir Khoder.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Bayram praised the \u201ccooperation between the public and private sectors,\u201d claiming that it builds trust between SORAL\u2019s administration and citizens.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

He also revealed that increases to the minimum wage and educational grants in the private sector are expected within a month.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The so-called “gift” from SORAL raises questions about the recruitment agencies’ true intentions. The gesture could be viewed as an attempt by SORAL to curry favor with the MoL, which regulates their industry.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

Earlier in January, SORAL published a vague statement warning employers from hiring irregular domestic workers<\/strong> through what it deemed to be \u201cunlawful\u201d methods.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The methods, according to SORAL, are advertising of daily, monthly, or yearly domestic \u201cservices\u201d<\/strong> provided by migrant workers on various online platforms.<\/span><\/p>

SORAL claims that most of the workers, as well as those who facilitate their employment, are working \u201cillegally\u201d as they violate residency regulations.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>

The so-called \u201cviolations\u201d also include:<\/span><\/p>