Recent postings from within the online blog community, as well as, in articles published by the Gulf Daily News have brought to attention the relocation project of Bahrain's hundreds of thousands of migrant workers currently living in make shift labor cities throughout the country. These dilapidated neighborhoods hidden behind the modern-day skyline reveal a much darker side of one of the region's freest and most rapidly developing economies.
In order to afford lodging (often following extended payment delays), reported figures show that at least 10 migrant workers will share rooms in apartment complexes with cracked foundations and crumbling facades under tin roofs offering little protection from the intense elements of Bahrain's desert climate. Workers are often forced into these conditions both due to financial and social obstacles they face while living temporarily in the Gulf countries, and derive from perceived threats they present vis a vis values and morals of the citizens of Bahrain. Complaints over men walking around shirtless or nude, noise, drunkenness, harassment towards women, and the sheer abundance of young males that are not familiar with the local culture and traditions present threats to Bahrainis living in close proximity to these congested communities.
The Bahraini Government has responded to these grievances by investing in "Labor City" projects across Bahrain to help keep migrant workers "out of sight" and to "preserve the privacy of residential areas" according to the government. With reference to the Community Blog Migrant-Rights.org (click for post below), the first of these camps located in the Al Hidd district is completed and will house approximately 4,000 workers. Plans to relocate the first group of workers were set to begin in January of this year.
Bahrain to Segregate Migrant Workers
The following video takes the viewer inside a labor camp in Dubai and provides visuals for the conditions migrant workers may face while living in the Gulf.
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