A woman who had been previously sentenced to three years in prison on charges of employing a domestic worker without paying her wages has been acquitted of forced labour.
The High Criminal Court yesterday cleared her of all charges after she contested the earlier verdict and submitted evidence demonstrating that she had no involvement in the alleged offence.
The defendant was accused of bringing over an Ethiopian woman to work as a housemaid in 2018 for a monthly salary of BD70, via a recruitment agency, but not granting her days off.
The Public Prosecution alleged that the ‘victim’ worked at the woman’s house for three years and was not allowed to leave the residence unaccompanied.
She stated that she received a monthly wage of BD50 during the first half of her employment, but was not paid anything during the second half. She claimed she was owed BD1,880 in unpaid wages.
The Bahraini woman denied the charges and contested the ruling issued against her by judges.
Attorney Zahra Husain, who represented the defendant, argued that her client was neither the sponsor nor the manager of the victim, and could not be held liable in this case.
“The objector was not the one who signed the contract – she is not responsible for her (victim’s) well-being, and does not answer for her presence in the country,” she said as part of her defence.
“There is no legal relationship linking the two women whatsoever, therefore the objector has no obligations towards her.
“Since the objector was not part of her employment or sponsorship, she could not have exploited or mistreated her, since she had no authority in the situation.
“There is nothing in the victim’s testimony to prove that the objector arranged her travel or employment, promised her work, or was the reason she came to Bahrain.”
“She, herself, had stated that she could move freely, and there was no barrier to her lodging a complaint with the authorities. She was not made to work under threat or by force. She remained in the house, and even moved to the defendant’s mother’s residence for job with no issue, which contradicts the accusations of forced labour.”
According to court documents, the Ethiopian domestic worker willingly moved to the other house to work for 2.5 years, then went to her country’s embassy and lodged the complaint.
The husband submitted a signed declaration to the court that he was the sole person responsible for the victim’s keeping, and that the defendant was not involved in the financial side of things.
“The victim’s complaint was presented to the Labour Market Regulatory Authority against the defendant’s husband, who was described as the employer, and the one who paid the salaries,” read the new ruling.
“The charge of human trafficking and forced labour against the objector is dubious, as there is no proof in the documents that she was responsible for paying the wages.
“This requires the court to nullify the previous verdict of a three-year-prison sentence and declare the defendant innocent of all charges.”
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