Legal expert Willis Otieno has sounded warnings over potential human rights violations affecting Kenyan workers employed in the Middle East, following an investigative report by The Standard highlighting abuse and systemic exploitation in the overseas domestic workforce.
The report outlines how some domestic workers, predominantly women, face mistreatment in Saudi Arabia while the Kenyan government’s oversight mechanisms remain limited.
Otieno described the situation as a contemporary manifestation of transnational human trafficking, thinly veiled as ‘labour mobility.’
He emphasized that presidential immunity, while recognized in Kenya’s constitution, does not extend to breaches of fundamental norms such as the prohibition against human trafficking and inhumane treatment, citing both domestic and international legal obligations.
The Standard investigation points to a labour migration system intertwined with political interests and private enterprises.
Some recruitment and staffing firms reportedly have links to influential figures, raising concerns about conflicts of interest and the prioritization of profit over worker safety.
Otieno noted that such arrangements can compromise the State’s responsibility to protect citizens abroad.
According to the lawyer, Kenya’s reliance on sending workers overseas contributes to a structural economic model that is heavily dependent on remittances.
“A State that systematically externalises its labour force and normalises remittance-dependency is not pursuing development but entrenching a predatory macroeconomic system,” he said.
He added that this approach risks reducing citizens to “exportable economic units” instead of promoting domestic employment and industrial growth.
Human rights advocates have long called for stronger regulations and welfare safeguards for Kenyans working abroad, citing repeated reports of abuse, delayed salaries, and limited access to legal recourse.
Kenya has historically relied on overseas employment as a means of easing domestic unemployment and generating foreign exchange, but critics argue this dependency can mask deeper structural issues in local job creation.
0 Comments