Saudi: Chaos at deportation centers

Jeddah, May 21: Chaos prevailed yesterday across deportation centers in Jeddah as expatriates rush to register for repatriation. Thousands returned unsuccessfully after waiting the entire day to scan their fingerprints.

Existing resources cannot match the huge crowd of expatriates.

According to sources, only three counters with a capacity of 200 people were operating. Officials are currently able to process only 50 applications per country on specific days.

At such a rate, Indian nationals alone will not be able to complete procedures within the grace period.

Hundreds of Pakistani, Sri Lankan and Egyptian expatriates lined up yesterday for scanning biometrics, with some arriving as early as 6 a.m. Scores of Sudanese nationals were also not able to make it inside and Yemenis were told to bring their consulate representatives. Hundreds of Sri Lankan and Pakistani nationals stood for hours under the sun. One elderly Pakistani woman fainted after nearly four hours of waiting.

In addition, officials have warned that extensive exposure to heat can hamper the results of biometric scanning. On the other hand, around 80 percent of Egyptians were able to complete deportation procedures before noon with the help of consulate representatives.

Mohammed Amjad Hussain, a Pakistani national, said: "I have been here since 5 a.m. and have waited for six hours even though I came here with an advisory from the Pakistan Consulate.”

With Tuesday allotted for Indian nationals, there will be a significant backlog of Pakistani and Sri Lankan nationals who were sent by their consulates yesterday but have not been able to complete the process.

Indian Consul General Faiz Ahmed Kidwai and Sri Lankan Consul General Adambawa Uthumalebbe visited the deportation center yesterday to meet with its director. A Pakistani consular team also visited the center.

Early yesterday morning, residents in Abrug Al-Raghama inundated the Passports Department seeking legalization of their work status.

Hussein bin Yahya Al-Harthi, director of the Passports Department in Makkah, said the department is accepting applicants between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily, adding that extensive resources have been allocated to the department to facilitate the processing of applications.

Al-Harthi called on everyone to abide by regulations. “We have designated Dallah company offices and the Passports Department as locations where applicants can process their requests.”

He said that the presence of the new sponsor or the sponsor’s legal representative (who should possess power of attorney) is a prerequisite for the transfer of sponsorships, adding that there are also separate prerequisites for legalizing the status of household workers.

These include the fact that the worker must have entered the Kingdom before July 2008, be under 60 years of age, registered in the biometrics system, have filled out the required form and undergone medical examination.

A worker must also be accompanied by a sponsor who must produce a bank statement dating back six months or a letter from their employee.

Household workers legalization procedures also incorporate foreign recruitment conditions.