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29 March 2024

Nepalese housemaid abuse rife among Indians

Published
By Joseph George

A top official at the Embassy of Nepal here in Abu Dhabi has cited a growing problem of abuse of Nepalese maids by Indian families who employ them.

According to Deepak Adhikari, Deputy Head of Mission at the Nepalese Embassy in the UAE, the government in Nepal has laid down stringent guidelines making it tough for those residing in the Gulf to hire housemaids.

Commenting on the abuse of maids by sponsors he said, “It is true that about 80 per cent of those who reported abuse were working in Indian families.”

During the last 18 months about 72 Nepali maids were repatriated to Nepal after they escaped from their sponsors seeking shelter in the Nepali Embassy in Abu Dhabi.

Adhikari adds: “That does not mean all Indians are bad employers. The number just reflects the proportion of Indians hiring maids from Nepal.”

Statistics with the embassy also reveal that majority of maids from Nepal are hired by Indian families living in the UAE.

“Maids from Nepal are polite, obedient and know Indian cooking. Therefore, they are preferred more by Indian families. However, not all families treat them well.

Maids most often end up cooking, do all the cleaning, take care of babies and end up working for almost 15 to 16 hours a day,” Adhikari added.

Nepal had earlier banned its nationals from working as maids in the Gulf. Despite the ban several thousand women had arrived in the Gulf to work as maids.

Last June, the government in Nepal reversed the ban and allowed women to work as maids, but laid out stringent criteria on families planning to hire maids from the country.

Families hiring maids, cleaners, babysitters and nannies from Nepal have to produce a police clearance and sign a separate labour contract apart from making a refundable deposit of Dh5,000 at the Nepalese embassy.

“The deposit will be refunded after the employee exits the country,” said Adhikari.