ILLEGAL loan sharks in Bahrain are the target of a movement that is now in the process of seeking official recognition.
The group Palisha Virudha Samithi, which literally translates as Committee Against Interest, has resumed activities following an alarming number of expatriate suicides this year.
It was first formed by Indian social workers in 2010 specifically to help those who ran up massive debts with black market money lenders, but was phased out when the situation appeared to improve.
However, a surge in the number of expat suicides in 2018 has prompted its revival and it now hopes to gain official status with support from the Indian Embassy.
It has already intervened in three cases this month in which people borrowed money from illegal lenders and were unable to pay it back.
“We resolved two cases, one a man and another a woman, who were both on the verge of suicide,” the group’s convenor, Kashmikandy Yoganandan, told the GDN.
“We are negotiating on a third case.”
The GDN has reported 31 expat suicides this year, 23 of them Indians – including 14 from Kerala.
Mr Yoganandan said more than 95 per cent of expatriate men who committed suicide in Bahrain did so because they were facing pressure from loan sharks.
“This year we have witnessed more than 30 suicides – the majority being Indian men,” he said.
“We understood over 95pc of these men were facing heavy debts and under tremendous pressure and harassment from loan sharks.
“This prompted us to reactivate the group and we received many calls this month.”
The GDN learnt that loan sharks often retained the personal documents of those they lent money to, such as passports, CPR cards and ATM cards.
They also charge inflated interest, meaning those who borrow money remain in debt long after they have paid back the initial principal.
Having handed over personal documents to secure illegal loans, borrowers are unable to leave the country to escape their plight.
“The sad part is that most of the victims have some documents with money lenders, which stops them from speaking out about it,” said Mr Yoganandan.
“They are under pressure and face humiliation, cruel verbal abuse and even physical threats.
“This forces them to end their lives.
“Usually the interest rate is BD10 per month and most of the time people end up paying more than double what they borrowed.
“Some are genuinely in need of money and are forced to borrow, but a good number of them do so because of poor financial planning.”
The borrower is often asked to sign documents confirming they owe the lender money, meaning they could face legal action if they fail to pay back an agreed amount.
However, Mr Yoganandan said the documents deliberately excluded how much of that was interest, meaning they could not be used to prosecute lenders who engage in illegal loan shark activity.
“In some cases there are voice and text messages, but again they are not enough to prove illegal activity,” he said.
“Above all there is this fear element in the victim.”
One way that Palisha Virudha Samithi tries to help those indebted is to mediate on their behalf with loan sharks.
“Our aim is to make money lenders feel the pressure and know they will be held accountable in case of fatalities,” explained Mr Yoganandan.
“Our message to them is that we are serious about this issue and will be here to help the victims.
“We believe support from the Indian Embassy will make our efforts effective and we are trying to talk to the ambassador in this regard.
“In the two cases we resolved the money lenders were ready to settle things amicably.
“So far the documents held were stamp papers and ATM cards.
“If a passport or CPR card is involved, we will refer the matter to authorities.”
Three hotlines set up by the group for victims of loan sharks to call are 33882835, 337548156 and 38459422.
raji@gdn.com.bh
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