THE VIDEO

See Happiness tell the story of the abuse by Randa Dana Mawla.

THE STORY

Happiness Paul left Nigeria on 25 June 2018 in search of a better life in Lebanon. Her father had died and she needed to support her family and earn enough to return home and continue her schooling.

Her employer was Randa Dana Mawla in Beirut. In the six months she worked for Randa, Happiness alleges that she was physically and verbally abused by her employer. The abuse included putting her hands around Happiness’ neck and threatening to kill her, and locking her in a room for three days without food. Happiness says that she was not allowed contact with her family and was not even allowed to look out the window. She alleges that Randa constantly called her names such as ‘donkey’ and ‘animal’.

The Lebanese General Security, the governing body which oversees all domestic workers and their security, amongst other functions, have told Happiness that Randa is well known to them for her abuse of previous domestic workers. Perhaps the publicity generated by this article will encourage Randa to reconsider how she treats her employees.

Happiness was also mistreated by one of Randa’s two daughters, Dana, age 19. Randa has another daughter, Farah, who is in her twenties. In one spiteful act, when Happiness gave Dana her freshly ironed clothes, she threw them on the ground saying they weren’t ironed properly and ordered her to iron everything again.

Shortly before Christmas, Randa threw Happiness’ personal possessions out of the door and told her to leave. She owed her two months’ salary. Happiness didn’t know anyone in Lebanon so she stopped a taxi and asked to be taken to General Security. She told them she wanted to stay in the jail since she didn’t know anybody and didn’t even have a phone to call her family. General Security called Randa’s husband who said there was no complaint against her. General Security then paid for a taxi to take Happiness to the Nigerian embassy. Randa refused all phone calls from the embassy; she didn’t respond to any calls from This Is Lebanon either.

General Security know Randa well. A former domestic worker from Nigeria, Mary, left the clutches of Randa’s employment, sick from overwork and a lack of food. Mr. El Mawla was summoned to General Security and asked if the family had any complaints against Happiness. To his credit, he responded in the negative; however, even he refused to pay for her ticket home or hand over her passport.

Happiness spent 9 months in the embassy shelter before travelling home. Her own family paid for the air ticket and she is still owed two months’ salary. Were it not for the Kafala system, Happiness would have been able to work while waiting for her situation to be resolved. Under Kafala, her legal status was tied to her abuser who refused to release her or let her go home. She was effectively a prisoner both inside Randa’s house and also in the shelter.

Happiness has now registered in college and is furthering her education.

“Just what I want from her is to pay for my ticket and my salary. But if she don’t want to give, it’s ok. I forgive. I give it for her since I’m not in her country. What can I do?” – Happiness Paul

Meet The Abusers

The Lebanese General Security knew of Randa’s abuse of previous domestic workers and did nothing.

Randa Dana Mawla

Calls her domestic workers ‘animal’ and ‘donkey.’ Serial abuser known by General Security in Lebanon. Starves and consistently abuses her slaves.

Mr. Mawla

While not actively participating in her abuse (so far as we know), he did nothing as this abuse and enslavement ran rampant in his household.

القصة

غادرت هابينز بول نيجيريا في 25 يونيو 2018 بحثاً عن حياة أفضل في لبنان. كان والدها قد توفي، وتوجب عليها إعالة أسرتها وكسب ما يكفي للعودة إلى بلدها ومواصلة دراستها.

كانت صاحبة عملها رندة دانا المولى في بيروت. في الستة أشهر التي عملت فيها عند رندة، تدّعي هابينز أنها تعرضت للإيذاء الجسدي واللفظي من قبل صاحبة عملها. وشملت إساءة المعاملة وضع يديها حول رقبة هابينز والتهديد بقتلها، وحبسها في غرفة لمدة ثلاثة أيام دون طعام. تقول هابينز إنه لم يُسمح لها بالاتصال بعائلتها ولم يُسمح لها حتى النظر من النافذة. وهي تدعي أن رندة كانت تهينها باستمرار بكلمات مثل “حمارة”

و “حيوانة”.

أخبر الأمن العام اللبناني، و هوالهيئة الحاكمة التي تشرف على جميع عاملات المنازل وأمنهن، بالإضافة لمهام الأخرى، هابينز بأن رندة معروفة جيداً عندهم بإساءة معاملتها لعاملات المنازل السابقات. ربما ستشجع الدعاية الناتجة عن هذا المقال رندة على إعادة النظر في كيفية تعاملها مع موظفيها.

تعرضت هابينز لسوء المعاملة أيضاً من قبل إحدى بنات رندة، المدعوة دانا ، البالغة من العمر 19 عاماً. ولدى رندة ابنة أخرى إسمها فرح، وهي في العشرينات من عمرها. في تصرف حاقد، عندما أعطت هابينز دانا ملابسها المكوية حديثاً، ألقت بهم على الأرض قائلة إنه لم يتم كويهم بشكل صحيح وأمرتها بكيّ كل شيء مرة أخرى.

قبل وقت قصير من عيد الميلاد، ألقت رندة ممتلكات هابينز الشخصية خارج الشقة وطلبت منها المغادرة. كانت مستحقاتها تبلغ رواتب شهرين. لم تعرف هابينز أي شخص في لبنان لذا أوقفت سيارة أجرة وطلبت نقلها إلى الأمن العام. قالت لهم أنها تريد البقاء في السجن لأنها لا تعرف أحداً وليس لديها هاتف للاتصال بأسرتها. اتصل الأمن العام بزوج رندة الذي قال إنه لم يكن هناك شكوى ضدها. ثم دفع الأمن العام لسيارة أجرة لنقل هابينز إلى السفارة النيجيرية. رفضت رندة جميع المكالمات الهاتفية من السفارة. لم ترد على أي مكالمات من “هذا لبنان”.

يعرف الأمن العام رندة جيداً. تركت ماري، وهي عاملة منازل سابقة من نيجيريا، براثن العمل عند رندة و هي مريضة بسبب العمل المفرط ونقص الطعام. تم استدعاء السيد المولى إلى الأمن العام وسُئل عما إذا كانت الأسرة لديها أي شكاوى ضد هابينز. صدق فأجاب بالنفي؛ ومع ذلك حتى هو رفض أن يدفع ثمن تذكرة العودة لبلدها أو تسليم جواز سفرها.

قضت هابينز 9 أشهر في ملجأ السفارة قبل السفر إلى بلدها. دفعت عائلتها ثمن تذكرة الطائرة ولا تزال مستحقاتها وهي رواتب شهرين غير مدفوعة. لولا نظام الكفالة، لكانت هابينز قادرة على العمل أثناء انتظار تسوية وضعها. تحت الكفالة، كان وضعها القانوني مرتبطاً بالمعتدي عليها الذي رفض الإفراج عنها أو السماح لها بالعودة إلى بلدها. كانت فعلاً سجينة داخل منزل رندة وأيضاً في الملجأ.

سجلت هابينز الآن في الكلية وتعمل على متابعة تعليمها.

“ما أريده منها هو دفع ثمن تذكرتي و رواتبي. لكن إذا كانت لا تريد أن تدفع، فلا بأس بذلك. أنا أسامح. أنا أعطيها لها لأنني لست في بلدها. ماذا يمكنني أن أفعل؟ “- هابينز بول

تعرف على المعتدين

علم الأمن العام اللبناني بسوء معاملة رندة لعاملات المنازل السابقات ولم يفعل شيئاً.

السيد مولى

على الرغم من عدم مشاركته فعلياً في إساءة المعاملة (على حد علمنا) ، لم يفعل شيئاً عند تفشي هذا التعنيف والاستعباد في منزله.

رندة دانا المولى

تدعو عاملات المنازل عندها “حيوانة” و “حمارة”. هي معنفة متسلسلة معروفة لدى الأمن العام في لبنان. تقوم بتجويع و إساءة معاملة عبيدها باستمرار.

THE STORY

Nidzma Lali Ammad came to Lebanon in 1997 from the Philippines. She ended up enslaved for 21 years, having no contact with her family during the two decades. She never once remitted money home. Nidzma’s employer and slaveholder was Issam Hayek and his family, owners of the Green Hills restaurant in Nabatieh.

Nidzma’s son contacted This Is Lebanon in March 2018 and we posted about her on our Facebook page. Shortly after that, we received a phone call from her, as detailed below. Nidzma was finally freed in April 2018; the Lebanese police force, the Lebanese General Security, the Philippines Embassy, and This Is Lebanon all played a part in her release.

Nidzma made a deal with the Hayeks, and she returned home to the Philippines She finally left Lebanon in April 2018, with an undisclosed sum of money; she was owed tens of thousands of dollars, and received a partial payment.

So what happened in the two decades Nidzma spent working for the Hayeks? What kind of conditions did she live in? Why didn’t her family hear from her for about 20 years? And why wasn’t she able to send home any money all that time? All these questions remain to be answered.

In May 2015, Nidzma’s family contacted Mona Hayek, Issam’s daughter, by WhatsApp. They asked for her help to send Nidzma home. Mona asked the family to send $1,000. They sent the money, and never heard from Mona again; she blocked them on WhatsApp. Nidzma remained working for the Hayeks.

In March 2018, Nidzma’s family contacted This Is Lebanon, asking where their wife, mother and daughter was. They hadn’t heard from her in decades and she had not remitted money home since she arrived in 1997. This Is Lebanon posted a clip from her son on 24 March, 2018, begging for his mother’s return.

On 25 March, 2018, This Is Lebanon posted about Nidzma, asking if she was dead or alive. After this, Nidzma contacted This Is Lebanon herself. During the call, she asked for her daughter’s phone number, while a Lebanese man speaking in the background instructed her on what to say. When we asked Nidzma why she hadn’t called her family for years, she said it was because she had lost the number.

Originally posted as: “DEAD OR ALIVE?? Nidzma Lali Ammad, Filipina.”

Shortly after Nidzma contacted us, the police broke down the door of her employer’s home. They had come twice before, having been informed by the Embassy of the Philippines about Nidzma’s situation. Presumably, Nidzma’s family had tried to contact her by all channels possible from the Philippines, and the embassy in Lebanon had been informed about their missing citizen. The police asked Nidzma if she wanted to go home, and she said that she did.

On 21 April, 2018, Nidzma was finally released from 21 years’ slavery in Nabatieh, having made a deal with her employers. Unfortunately, Nidzma’s mother died 40 days before her release.

This story still has many gaps and unanswered questions. In the end, she made a deal with her former employers, and finally managed to return home. Neither she nor her family are willing to speak further about her ordeal.

Her former employer Issam Hayek spent three days in detention before agreeing to pay Nidzma an undisclosed amount; three days’ detention for enslaving someone for 21 years. This is Lebanon.

Update 13/10/19 After we posted on Facebook, a Lebanese commented: ” This story is 100% correct. I lived in the same building with them. She came with them from Saudi in 1996 and was forbidden to leave the house. What is written is nothing. What happened is much worse.”

Nidzma Talks to Her Family for the First Time in 2 Decades After Enslavement by the Hayeks

Malak Mourad Confirms Abuse of Hayek Family, Enslavers of Nidzma for 21 Years in Lebanon’s Kafala in Nebetiah

Meet The Abusers

Slavery: a family business

Issam Hayek

Owner of Green Hills Restaurant in Nabatieh. Spent three days in detention before agreeing to pay Nidzma an undisclosed amount; three days’ detention for enslaving someone for 21 years. This is Lebanon.

Mother Hayek - Mother in Enslaver Family Hayeks of Nidzma in Lebanese Kafala

Izdihar Hayek

Looked upon Nidzma’s 21 years of slavery and chose to do nothing. For twenty-one years she ordered Nidzma around to serve her and her family without pay.

Mona Hayek

Talked to Nidzma’s family and managed to extract $1000 from them before blocking them. Profited from her parent’s enslavement of Nidzma.

Ali Issam Hayek

Son of Issam Hayek. Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at the Islamic University of Lebanon. Businesses are very profitable when they aren’t required to pay workers their wages. Slavery is good for business.

القصة

جاءت نيدزما لالي آماد إلى لبنان عام 1997 قادمة من الفلبين. انتهى بها المطاف لأن تكون مستعبدة لمدة 21 عاماً، دون أي اتصال بعائلتها خلال العقدين. لم تحول الأموال أبداً إلى منزلها ولا مرة واحدة. كان صاحب عمل نيدزما و مالك العبيد هو عصام حايك وعائلته، أصحاب مطعم غرين هيلز في النبطية.

اتصل ابن نيدزما بـ “هذا هو لبنان” في آذار 2018 وقد نشرنا عنها على صفحتنا على فيسبوك. بعد ذلك بوقت قصير، تلقينا مكالمة هاتفية منها على النحو المفصل أدناه. تم إطلاق سراح نيدزما أخيراً في نيسان 2018 ؛ لعبت كل من قوة الشرطة اللبنانية والأمن العام اللبناني و”هذا هو لبنان” دوراً في إطلاق سراحها.

عقدت نيدزما صفقة مع عائلة حايك، وعادت إلى الوطن الفلبين. غادرت لبنان أخيراً في نيسان 2018، مع مبلغ لم يكشف عنه؛ بلغت قيمة مستحقاتها عشرات الآلاف من الدولارات، وحصلت على دفعة جزئية.

إذن ما الذي حدث في العقدين اللذين قضتهما نيدزما في العمل لدى عائلة حايك؟ في أية ظروف عاشت؟ لماذا لم تسمع عائلتها عنها منذ 20 عاماً؟ ولماذا لم تتمكن من إرسال أي أموال إلى المنزل خلال 20 عاماً؟ كل هذه الأسئلة بحاجة للإجابة عليها.

في أيار 2015 اتصلت عائلة نيدزما ب منى حايك، ابنة عصام بواسطة الواتس آب. طلبوا مساعدتها لإرسال نيدزما إلى بلدها. طلبت منى من العائلة إرسال 1000 دولار. أرسلوا المال، ولم يسمعوا من منى أبداً. حظرتهم على واتس آب. بقيت نيدزما تعمل من أجل عائلة الحايك.

في آذار 2018 اتصلت عائلة نيدزما بـ “هذا هو لبنان” ، وسألتهم عن مكان وجود الزوجة وأمهم وابنتهم. لم يسمعوا عنها منذ 20 عاماً ولم تقم بتحويل الأموال إلى المنزل منذ وصولها عام 1997. نشر “هذا هو لبنان” مقطعاً من ابنها في 24 آذار 2018، يتوسل لعودة والدته.

في 25 آذار 2018 نشرت صفحة ” هذا هو لبنان” عن نيدزما، متسائلة عما إذا كانت ميتة أم حية. بعد ذلك اتصلت نيدزما شخصياً بـ “هذا هو لبنان” . أثناء المكالمة طلبت رقم هاتف ابنتها، بينما لقّنها رجل لبناني يتحدث في الخلفية بما تقول. عندما سألنا نيدزما لماذا لم تتصل بعائلتها لسنوات، قالت إن السبب في ذلك هو أنها أضاعت الرقم.

بعد فترة وجيزة من اتصال نيدزما بنا، قامت الشرطة بكسر باب منزل صاحب عملها. لقد حضروا مرتين من قبل، بعدما أبلغتهم سفارة الفلبين بحالة نيدزما. من المفترض أن عائلة نيدزما حاولت الاتصال بها بجميع القنوات الممكنة من الفلبين، وقد أبلغت السفارة في لبنان عن مواطنتها المفقودة. سألت الشرطة نيدزما إذا كانت تريد العودة إلى المنزل، وقالت إنها أرادت ذلك.

في 21 نيسان 2018 ، تم إطلاق سراح “نيدزما” أخيرًا من العبودية التي استمرت 21 عاماً في النبطية، بعد أن أبرمت صفقة مع أصحاب عملها. لسوء الحظ ، توفيت والدة نيدزما قبل 40 يوم من إطلاق سراحها. تتحدث في الصورة أدناه مع ابنتها في كندا لأول مرة منذ أكثر من عقدين.

لا تزال لهذه القصة العديد من الفجوات والأسئلة التي لم تتم الإجابة عليها. في النهاية عقدت صفقة مع أصحاب عملها السابقين، وتمكنت أخيراً من العودة إلى بلدها. لا هي ولا عائلتها على استعداد للتحدث أكثر عن محنتها.

أمضى صاحب عملها السابق عصام حايك ثلاثة أيام رهن الاحتجاز قبل الموافقة على دفع مبلغاً لم يكشف عنه ل نيدزما ؛ احتجاز ثلاثة أيام

لاستعباد شخص ما لمدة 21 عاماً. هذا هو لبنان

THE STORY

This story was first published in the Addis Standard in July 2019 as part of a broader investigation into Ethiopian migrant domestic worker deaths in Lebanon.

Mulu Tilaye Tekle was born in the rural Amhara region’s North Shewa zone. She had barely turned 20 when she arrived in Lebanon in 2017, eager to find work that would help support her family back home. Her older sister, Zenebech, had made the trip before her and had a consistent source of income based through her work in a home in Beirut. Mulu sought to double the family’s earnings and thought the presence of her sister would render the transition to life in Lebanon easier. But it wasn’t to be. The two would never even meet. Mulu thought she had found legitimate employment when she moved into the home of Elie Kahwach, a 50 year old retired Lebanese Army officer, and his wife Pauline Chahine, 41.

The couple and their two children live in an apartment on the 5th floor of a building located in the Lebanese coastal town of Jounieh, just north of Beirut. There, Mulu worked all week with no breaks. Pay was intermittent at best, before becoming a rarity altogether, says Mulu’s brother, Wolde Tilaye.

“At first she would send me money through her employers on a regular basis. Later, I wouldn’t know when she was being paid,” Wolde told Addis Standard from his home in Addis Ababa. “But before her death, she had not been paid for at least three months.”

If the lack of clarity surrounding her pay wasn’t worrying enough, the fact that she was kept a virtual prisoner in the apartment meant that the family was unable to verify if she was being abused by her employers, an extremely common occurrence. Mulu was never allowed to either leave the premises on her own or even possess a mobile phone. The latter would have permitted her to remain in regular contact with her family in Ethiopia and her sister in Lebanon. But the only time she was ever allowed to contact her family was when Elie Kahwach allowed it. He’d set her up with a VoIP app on his own phone with which she would be allowed to speak with her brother for a few minutes. Then the line would cut and that would be it. “Caller display always showed a different number. I could never call and actually reach her,” Wolde recalls. “But she always sounded fearful, frightened. She did tell me she couldn’t speak openly because the man was watching her as she spoke.”

Her sister was especially worried that something was happening to her. In the year or so since her hiring, she had not once been permitted to meet with her sister. Whenever Kahwach or Chahine left the home, they always made sure to lock Mulu inside so she couldn’t venture out. “I was able to find out from neighbors and friends that she was being regularly abused,” her sister Zenebech said. Zenebech accuses Elie Kahwach of personally meting out much of the abuse. “He used to tell her, I’m an army man. I can get away with anything.”

On 12 April 2019, it all became too much for Mulu. Desperate to escape her circumstances, she took the plunge, jumping from the balcony of the 5th floor apartment towards the concrete ground below. The fall caused numerous bone fractures and internal bleeding that made it impossible to survive. She was 21. Instead of rushing her to the hospital, onlookers gawked and took pictures of the mortally wounded young woman.

In an interview with local media outlet Daily Star, Elie Kahwach denied ever beating or abusing her. “This is not true, it’s not accurate and it’s shameful,” he said. “We would treat her very well, we really liked her.” Despite this, he did admit that he kept Mulu locked in the house.

Through regular contact with members of the This Is Lebanon organization and a network of activists on the ground, Addis Standard has been able to obtain the Lebanese police report into Mulu’s death. According to the report, both Kahwach and his wife Pauline Chahine denied physically abusing Mulu when questioned by police, but did admit that Mulu never had access to a phone and was virtually imprisoned in the home, locked indoors with no way of getting out. They both claimed they had no idea why Mulu would resort to jumping off a 5th floor balcony to escape the home.

The ten-story building Mulu Tilaye was confined in and finally died trying to escape from

Kahwach, who owned the 5th floor apartment Mulu Tilaye worked in, is accused by Mulu’s family of physically assaulting her. Mulu ended up making a fatal jump off the apartment’s balcony in an attempt to escape the home

Elie Kahwach, who owned the 5th floor apartment Mulu Tilaye worked in, is accused by Mulu’s family of physically assaulting her and keeping her as a slave. Mulu ended up making a fatal jump off the apartment’s balcony in an attempt to escape the home.

Through an undercover collaborator Addis Standard contacted the couple after obtaining their contact information. As Mulu’s brother had alleged that the couple owed his sister three months’ pay, Pauline was first asked to respond to claims that Mulu had worked unpaid between January and 12 April 2019. “It was Mulu’s choice,” Chahine insisted. “She took charge of her own finances. She had asked to use Western Union to send money to her parents every three months.”

It could be true that not all of the money they paid Mulu was sent to her brother Wolde and that perhaps she had chosen on several occasions to hold onto her earnings. However, Chahine’s portrayal of Mulu being in charge of her financial destiny doesn’t hold water when one recalls that the same couple banned her from using a phone or even going outdoors. Addis Standard pressed Chahine on this latter topic.

Elie Kahwach and his wife Pauline Chahine. In her conversation with Addis Standard, Chahine claimed that she had no idea that Mulu had a sister that wanted to visit her. A police report quotes her as admitting that she never allowed Mulu permission to leave the home

Chahine’s claim to have had no idea of Mulu having a sister in Lebanon appears to be a blatant lie. According to the same Lebanese media report cited above, Mulu’s sister, Zenebech, went as far as pleading with GMN, the recruitment agency that sent Mulu to Chahine’s apartment. The man who runs the agency, Nidal Hashem, told the Daily Star that he contacted Pauline and Elie, notified them about the sister’s complaint and asked them to bring Mulu to his office and find another employee for them. “They refused,” he said.

Pauline Chahine admitted to having confined Mulu in a locked space 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Her denial of having any knowledge of Mulu having a sister in Lebanon when available evidence suggests that this isn’t true, further dents her credibility. Addis Standard brought this up in the brief phone exchange with Chahine.

“Both you and your husband admitted that Mulu was always kept within the confines of the home at all times. Why did you not once allow her to leave? Why did you turn her into a prisoner?”

At this point, Chahine became agitated and refused to answer the question, instead redirecting all inquiries to her lawyer before abruptly hanging up.

There are plenty of discrepancies between the versions of the story that Elie Kahwach and Pauline Chahine told Lebanese press and investigators and what really happened. There are grounds for a criminal case being pursued here. The Ethiopian consulate’s mandate would cover lobbying for justice and for the full truth to come out. After all, although proof of the family’s claims of abuse might be somewhat difficult to obtain, Elie Kahwach has openly admitted to committing at least one violation of the UNHCR ratified International Convention on the Protection of Migrant Workers – unlawful restraint.

The Police Report

The police report into Mulu’s death reveals that the Ethiopian consulate did indeed send an official to take charge of the case. The report identifies this official as being 46 year old Nigussie Bedaso Mola, whom Addis Standard learned has spent a sizeable part of his career posted in Beirut. The veteran diplomat met with Lebanese police Warrant Chief Bilal El Ali days after Mulu’s death. Nigussie, described as being fluent in Arabic, gives a sworn statement. “I have taken necessary measures to send her remains back to Ethiopia for burial. I will also send her passport, residence permit and possessions including Lebanese and Ethiopian currency notes, as well as pictures of church saints. I’d like to confirm our legal rights to pursue justice in the case of further information emerging.”

Pages from the Lebanese police report into Mulu Tilaye’s death. These pages identify consular official Nigussie Bedaso Mola as having met with a Lebanese police chief. The document shows that Nigussie did indicate that he’d be willing to pursue a legal case if sufficient evidence of foul play was available. They is evidence that despite his later denials, he did have a mandate that includes pursuing suspected abusers of Ethiopian citizens in the Lebanese court. He is not known to have taken any subsequent action. Censored here is Nigussie’s personal contact information.

The last sentence confirms that Nigussie does indeed have a mandate that includes exploring legal avenues in cases where he is assigned and foul play is suspected.

However, almost three months after having given this statement, Nigussie Bedaso Mola is confirmed to have done absolutely nothing of the kind. Neither Elie Kahwach nor Pauline Chahine have been charged with any crimes. It had been over two months since Mulu’s death when Addis Standard reached the couple by phone, and they appeared surprised that anyone would call regarding the young woman who had died trying to flee their home. And Nigussie Bedaso, the diplomat in charge, is yet to speak with the family let alone hire a lawyer to pursue the truth.

“Nobody,” said Mulu’s father Tilaye Tekle, when asked by Addis Standard whether anyone from the Ethiopian Consulate or government had contacted him about his late daughter. “No, we are alone as a family carrying the burden of this loss.”

Addis Standard tried to contact the consulate office about Nigussie’s inactivity regarding Mulu’s death on several occasions. Despite the secretary at the main desk answering the phone and promising to connect the line with Nigussie’s office, the call would end moments later. Nigussie proved to be elusive when contacted via official consular phone lines. After it became clear that using the office numbers was futile, Addis Standard obtained his personal cellular phone number. After several unsuccessful attempts to reach him, he was sent a text on WhatsApp asking him to explain why, despite his being tasked with overseeing post mortem procedures in the case of Mulu Tilaye and despite his confirming that he was interested in a potential legal case, he had done nothing whatsoever in the two months or so since Mulu died.

He replied: “What do you mean I didn’t call the family? How were we able to send the remains home without contacting the family?” When asked whether he believed his responsibilities were limited to sending coffins home, he answers: “What I know is that the body has been sent home.” He then replied with a picture containing private contact information of someone who appeared to be one of Mulu’s siblings. “We even sent the coroner’s report with the body. Besides, you shouldn’t be contacting me, but the main office.”

When reminded that it was him who was put in charge of the case and that any responsibilities that would see Pauline Chahine and Elie Kahwach appear in court for abuse and contributing to the death of a 21 year old Ethiopian citizen would be his, Nigussie stopped responding. From his responses, it’s clear that he found it inconceivable that one would have expectations of him that go beyond sending her remains home.

His reluctance to act has resulted in Elie Kahwach joining the ranks of Lebanese employers suspected of inflicting horrendous abuse on Ethiopian domestic workers and not being held accountable.

Meet The Abusers

These are the abusers and those who looked onto Mulu’s case and chose to continue the abuse or look away.

“Pauline Chahine admitted to having confined Mulu in a locked space 24 hours a day, seven days a week” – Addis Standard

Pauline Chahine

Torturer and abuser of Mulu. She is still evading all responsibility for her death.

Elie Kahwach

He is the most prominent abuser. “He used to tell her, I’m an army man. I can get away with anything.”

Nigussie Bedaso Mola

Long-serving Ethiopian diplomat in Lebanon. He seemed rather unconcerned with Mulu’s death.

القصة

نُشرت هذه القصة لأول مرة في مجلة أديس ستاندرد في تموز 2019 كجزء من تحقيق واسع النطاق في وفاة عاملات المنازل الأثيوبيات المهاجرات في لبنان.

ولدت مولو تيلاي تيكله في ولاية أمهرة الريفية شمال منطقة شيوا. كانت بالكاد قد بلغت سن العشرين عندما وصلت إلى لبنان في عام 2017، متلهفة للعثور على عمل من شأنه أن يساعد أسرتها في بلدها. كانت أختها الكبرى زينبيك قد سافرت قبلها، وكان لها مصدر دخل ثابت في منزل في بيروت. سعت مولو لمضاعفة دخل الأسرة واعتقدت أن وجود أختها سيجعل الانتقال إلى الحياة في لبنان أسهل. لكن ذلك لم يحدث. لم تجتمع الاثنتان أبداً. ظنت مولو أنها وجدت عملاً مشروعاً عندما انتقلت إلى منزل إيلي قحوش وهو ضابط متقاعد في الجيش اللبناني يبلغ من العمر 50 عاماً، وزوجته بولين شاهين 41 عاماً.

يعيش الزوجان وطفليهما في شقة في الطابق الخامس من مبنى يقع في مدينة جونيه الساحلية اللبنانية شمال بيروت. هناك، عملت مولو طوال الأسبوع بدون استراحة. كان الدفع متقطعاً في أحسن الأحوال قبل أن يصبح نادراً تماماً، يقول شقيق مولو، وولدي تيالي.

أخبر وولدي أديس ستاندرد من منزله في أديس أبابا: “في البداية كانت ترسل لي المال عن طريق أصحاب عملها بشكل منتظم. فيما بعد لم أكن أعرف متى يتم الدفع لها. لكن قبل وفاتها لم تحصل على أجر لمدة ثلاثة أشهر على الأقل”.

إذا كان الغموض الذي يلف بقضية أجورها لا يدعو للقلق بما يكفي، فإن كونها سجينة محتجزة في الشقة ولو افتراضياً، يعني أن أسرتها لم تتمكن من التحقق فيما إذا كانت قد تعرضت للتعنيف من قِبل أصحاب عملها، وهذا أمر شائع للغاية. لم يُسمح للعاملة مولو مطلقاً بمغادرة المبنى بمفردها أو حتى امتلاك هاتف محمول. كان من الممكن أن يسمح لها الهاتف بالبقاء على اتصال دائم مع أسرتها في إثيوبيا وشقيقتها في لبنان. لكن المرة الوحيدة التي ُسمح َ لها فيها بالاتصال بعائلتها كانت عندما سمح إيلي قحوش بذلك. لقد وضع الإعدادات لها في تطبيق VoIP على هاتفه الخاص، وسمح لها بالتحدث مع شقيقها لبضع دقائق. ثم كان الخط ينقطع و تنتهي المكالمة. يتذكر وولدي: “أظهر عرض المتصل دائماً رقماً مختلفاً دائماً. لم يكن بإمكاني الاتصال بها أو الوصول إليها في الواقع. لكنها بدت خائفة ومرتعبة. أخبرتني أنها لا تستطيع التحدث بصراحة لأن الرجل كان يراقبها وهي تتكلم.”

كانت شقيقتها قلقة بشكل خاص من أنها ليست بخير. لم يُسمح لها على الإطلاق أن تلتقي شقيقتها خلال العام الذي عملت فيه. كلما غادر قحوش أو شاهين المنزل، كانا يحرصان دائماً على إقفال الباب على مولو في الداخل حتى لا تتمكن من الخروج. قالت شقيقتها زينبيك: “لقد عرفت من الجيران والأصدقاء أنها كانت تتعرض للتعنيف بشكل دائم”. تتهم زينبيك إيلي قحوش شخصياً بارتكاب الكثير من الانتهاكات. “كان يقول لها أنا رجل في الجيش. يمكنني الإفلات من أي شيء.”

في 12 نيسان 2019 فاض الكيل بالنسبة ل “مولو”. في محاولة يائسة للهرب من ظروفها، عقدت عزمها و قفزت من شرفة شقة الطابق الخامس نحو الأرض الصلبة في الأسفل. تسبب السقوط في كسور متعددة في العظام ونزيف داخلي، الأمر الذي جعل نجاتها مستحيلة. كانت تبلغ من العمر 21 عاماً. وبدلاً من الإسراع بها إلى المستشفى، راح المتفرجون يحدّقون بها ويلتقطون صوراً للمرأة المصابة بجروح مميتة.

في مقابلة مع صحيفة ديلي ستار المحلية، أنكر إيلي قحوش ضربها أو الإساءة إليها قط. وقال “هذا غير صحيح، إنه غير دقيق، إنه أمر مخجل. كنا نعاملها معاملة حسنة جداً، لقد أحببناها حقاً.” وعلى الرغم من ذلك، اعترف بأنه كان يحتجز مولو في المنزل.

من خلال الاتصال المتكرر مع أعضاء جمعية “هذا لبنان” وشبكة من الناشطين ميدانياً، تمكنت “أديس ستاندرد” من الحصول على تقرير الشرطة اللبنانية عن وفاة مولو. ووفقاً للتقرير فقد أنكر قحوش وزوجته بولين شاهين الاعتداء الجسدي على مولو عندما استجوبتهما الشرطة، لكنهما اعترفا بأن مولو لم تتمكن مطلقاً من الاتصال بالهاتف و أنها كانت بحكم السجينة فعلاً في المنزل، مقفلاً عليها بدون أية وسيلة للخروج. وادّعى الاثنان أنه ليس لديهما أية فكرة عن سبب لجوء مولو إلى القفز من شرفة الطابق الخامس للهرب من المنزل.

المبنى المكون من 10 طوابق الذي كانت مولو تالي محتجزة فيه وتوفيت أخيراً وهي تحاول الفرار منه – الصورة: “هذا لبنان”

إيلي قحوش صاحب الشقة في الطابق الخامس التي عملت فيها مولو تيالي، تتهمه عائلة مولو بالاعتداء عليها جسدياً. انتهى الأمر ب “مولو” إلى القفز المميت من شرفة الشقة في محاولة للهروب من المنزل.

من خلال أحد المتعاونين السريين، اتصلت أديس ستاندرد بالزوجين بعد الحصول على معلومات الاتصال الخاصة بهما. بما أن شقيق مولو قد زعم أن الزوجين مدينان لأخته بأجر ثلاثة أشهر، فقد ُطلب من بولين أولاً الرد على الادعاءات بأن مولو عملت بدون أجر بين كانون الثاني و 12 نيسان. أصرّت شاهين قائلة: “كان ذلك خيار مولو.” لقد تولت مسؤولية شؤونها المالية. وطلبت استخدام ويسترن يونيون لإرسال الأموال إلى والديها كل ثلاثة أشهر.

قد يكون صحيحاً أنه لم يتم إرسال كل الأموال التي دفعوها ل “مولو” إلى شقيقها وولدي، وربما اختارت في عدة مناسبات الاحتفاظ بأجورها. ومع ذلك فإن وصف شاهين ل “مولو” بأنها مسؤولة عن مصيرها المالي لا يُصدق عندما يتذكر المرء أن الزوجين نفسهما منعاها من استخدام الهاتف أو حتى الخروج من المنزل. ضغطت أديس ستاندرد على شاهين في هذا الموضوع الأخير.

يبدو أن ادّعاء شاهين بأنه لم تكن لديها فكرة عن وجود أخت ل “مولو” في لبنان كذبة فاضحة. وفق للتقرير الإعلامي اللبناني نفسه المذكور أعلاه، فإن زينبيك أخت مولو ذهبت إلى حد التوسل إلى وكالة التوظيف التي أرسلت مولو إلى شقة شاهين. وقال الرجل الذي يدير الوكالة، نضال هاشم، لصحيفة ديلي ستار إنه اتصل مع بولين وإيلي، وأبلغهما بشكوى الأخت وطلب منهما إحضار مولو إلى مكتبه وإيجاد عاملة أخرى لهما. قال: “لقد رفضا.”

اعترفت بولين شاهين بحبس مولو في مكان مغلق على مدار الساعة وطوال أيام الأسبوع. إن إنكارها التام لعلمها بوجود أخت ل “مولو” في لبنان عندما تشير الأدلة المتاحة إلى أن هذا غير صحيح، يطعن في مصداقيتها. ذكرت أديس ستاندرد هذا في محادثة هاتفية وجيزة مع شاهين. “لقد اعترفتِ أنت وزوجك أن مولو كانت دائما محتجزة داخل حدود المنزل في جميع الأوقات. لماذا لم تسمحي لها مرة بالمغادرة؟ لماذا حولتها إلى سجينة؟”

عند هذه النقطة انفعلت شاهين ورفضت الإجابة على السؤال وبدلاً من ذلك أحالت جميع الاستفسارات إلى محاميها قبل إنهاء المكالمة فجأة.

هناك الكثير من التناقضات بين روايات القصة التي أخبرها إيلي قحوش وبولين شاهين للصحافيين والمحققين اللبنانيين وبين ما حدث بالفعل. هناك أساس لقضية جنائية يجري متابعتها هنا. إن تفويض القنصلية الإثيوبية من شأنه أن يشمل ممارسة الضغوط من أجل العدالة ومن أجل التوصل إلى الحقيقة الكاملة. في النهاية، وعلى الرغم من أن إثبات ادعاءات الأسرة بالتعنيف قد يكون صعباً إلى حد ما، إلا أن إيلي قحوش اعترف صراحة بارتكاب انتهاك واحد على الأقل للاتفاقية الدولية لحماية العمال المهاجرين التي صدّقت عليها مفوضية الأمم المتحدة لشؤون اللاجئين – الحجز غير القانوني.

تقرير الشرطة

يكشف تقرير الشرطة حول وفاة مولو أن القنصلية الإثيوبية أرسلت بالفعل مسؤولاً لتولي القضية. يحدد التقرير هذا المسؤول بأنه نيغوسي بيداسو مولا، البالغ من العمر 46 عاماً، والذي علمت أديس ستاندرد أنه قد أمضى جزءاً كبيراً من حياته المهنية في بيروت. التقى الدبلوماسي المخضرم برئيس الشرطة اللبنانية بلال العلي بعد أيام من وفاة مولو. أعطى نيغوسي، الذي يوصف بأنه يجيد اللغة العربية، بياناً محلّفاً. “لقد اتخذت التدابير اللازمة لإرسال رفاتها إلى إثيوبيا لدفنها. سأرسل أيضاً جواز سفرها وتصريح الإقامة وممتلكاتها، بما في ذلك العملات الورقية اللبنانية والإثيوبية، وكذلك صور قديسي الكنيسة. أرغب في تأكيد حقوقنا الشرعية في السعي لتحقيق العدالة في حال ظهور المزيد من المعلومات.”

صفحات من تقرير الشرطة اللبنانية عن وفاة مولو تالي. تحدد هذه الصفحات المسؤول القنصلي نيغوسي بيداسو موال بأنه التقى قائد شرطة لبناني. توضح الوثيقة أن نيغوسي أشار إلى إستعداده لمتابعة قضية قانونية في حال توفر دليل كاف على سلوك غير قانوني. رغم إنكاره اللاحق، هناك دليل على وجود تفويض لديه يتضمن ملاحقة المشتبه بإساءة معاملته للمواطنين الإثيوبيين في المحكمة اللبنانية. لا يُعرف عنه أنه اتخذ أي إجراء لاحق. معلومات الاتصال الشخصية الخاصة ب “نيغوسي” هنا هي محجوبة.

تؤكد الجملة الأخيرة أن نيغوسي لديه بالفعل تفويض يتضمن استكشاف السبل القانونية في الحالات التي يتم تعيينه فيها ويشتبه بوجود سلوك غير قانوني فيها.

ومع ذلك، بعد مرور ثلاثة أشهر تقريباً على الإدلاء بهذا التصريح، من المؤكد أن نيغوسي بيداسو مولا لم يفعل شيئاً من هذا القبيل على الإطلاق. لم يتم اتهام إيلي قحوش أو بولين شاهين بأية جرائم. كان قد مر أكثر من شهرين على وفاة مولو عندما اتصلت أديس ستاندرد بالزوجين عبر الهاتف، وبدا أنهما قد فوجئا بأن أحداً ما سيتصل بخصوص الشابة التي توفيت وهي تحاول الهرب من منزلهما. ولم يتحدث الدبلوماسي المسؤول نيغوسي بيداسو مع العائلة حتى الآن، ناهيك عن تعيين محام لمعرفة الحقيقة.

عندما سألته أديس ستاندرد إن كان أي شخص من القنصلية أو الحكومة الإثيوبية قد اتصل به بشأن ابنته الراحلة، قال والد مولو، تيالي تيكل: “لا أحد.” “كلا، نحن وحدنا كأسرة نتحمل عبء هذه الخسارة”.

حاولت أديس ستاندرد الاتصال بمكتب القنصلية بشأن تقاعس نيغوسي حيال وفاة مولو في عدة مناسبات. وعلى الرغم من قيام السكرتير في المكتب الرئيسي بالرد على الهاتف ووعده بتوصيل الخط بمكتب نيغوسي، فإن المكالمة كانت تنتهي بعد لحظات. أثبت نيغوسي أنه بعيد المنال عند الاتصال به عبر خطوط هاتف القنصلية. بعد أن اتضح أن استخدام أرقام المكاتب كان غير ذي جدوى، حصلت أديس ستاندرد على رقم هاتفه الخلوي الشخصي. بعد عدة محاولات للاتصال به باءت بالفشل، تم إرسال رسالة نصية عبر واتس آب يطلبون منه أن يشرح سبب عدم فعله أي شيء على الإطلاق في مدة الشهرين أو نحو ذلك منذ وفاة مولو، على الرغم من تكليفه بالإشراف على إجراءات ما بعد الوفاة في قضية مولو تيالي، وعلى الرغم من تأكيده على اهتمامه بقضية قانونية مرتقبة.

أجاب: “ماذا تقصد بأنني لم أتصل بالعائلة؟ كيف استطعنا إرسال الجثمان إلى بلدها دون الاتصال بالعائلة؟ وكان ردّه عندما سّئل عما إذا كان يعتقد أن مسؤولياته تقتصر على إرسال الأكفان إلى الوطن بأن قال: “ما أعرفه هو أنه قد تم إرسال الجثمان إلى الوطن.” ثم أجاب بصورة تتضمن معلومات اتصال خاصة لشخص يبدو أنه أحد أشقاء مولو. “لقد أرسلنا تقرير الطبيب الشرعي مع الجثة. بالإضافة إلى ذلك، يجب ألّا تتصل بي، بل بالمكتب الرئيسي.”

حين تم تذكيره بأنه هو الذي كُلّفَ بالقضية وبأنها مسؤوليته أن يجعل بولين شاهين وإيلي قحوش يمثلان أمام المحكمة للتعنيف والمساهمة في وفاة مواطنة إثيوبية تبلغ من العمر 21 عاماً فهي تقع على عاتقه، امتنع نيغوسي عن الاستجابة. من الواضح من إجاباته أنه لم يتصور بأن يكون لدى المرء توقعات منه تتجاوز إرسال رفاتها إلى بلدها.

لقد أدى إحجامه عن التصرف إلى انضمام إيلي قحوش إلى صفوف أصحاب العمل اللبنانيين الذين يشتبه في تعنيفهم الفظيع لعاملات المنازل الإثيوبيات وإفلاتهم من الخضوع لأية محاسبة.

THE VIDEO

See Lydia tell the story of the abuse by Im Khaled and her family.

THE STORY

Lydia Nabangala, a Kenyan national, arrived in Lebanon on XXX XXX 2019 to begin a job as a domestic worker. She was employed by the Yassine family, based in Tripoli; she worked for Um Khaled and three sons, Khaled (otherwise known as Abu Khaldoun), Nader and Jawad.

Lydia was subjected to daily physical abuse by Jawad, who lived at home, and his mother. Lydia was made to work on a farm, planting, weeding and digging with her bare hands. She alleges that the family denied her adequate food and didn’t pay her.

She was made to clean two houses; Um Khaled is a co-wife, and Lydia had to clean the other family’s house as well. She often stayed up cleaning until 2:30am.

On XXX XX 2019, she managed to escape, and returned to her employment office. She told them: “I can’t work without money and food, and go on the farm. It’s not my work.”

“She was tearing my Bible, then she slapped me, and held me by the neck” – Lydia

Instead of helping her, the agent accused her of lying, and returned her to her abusers. On 5 August (?) 2019, the co-wife’s family emigrated to Australia. Before doing so, they took Lydia back to the employment agency.

This time, Lydia brought with her video evidence of her gruelling farm work, and of Um Khaled beating her up.

Meet The Abusers

These are the abusers and those who looked onto Lensa’s abuse and chose to help Eleanore Couture cover it up.

“I have experienced a lot of abuse. Nobody sees me and nobody helps me.” – Lensa

Eleanore Ajami

Founder and owner of Eleanore Couture. Sponsor of Lensa’s employment. Lensa testifies, “the old lady filmed it on her phone for Alexis to watch on video call.”

Eleanore Ajami

Founder and owner of Eleanore Couture. Sponsor of Lensa’s employment. Lensa testifies, “the old lady filmed it on her phone for Alexis to watch on video call.”

Eleanore Ajami

Founder and owner of Eleanore Couture. Sponsor of Lensa’s employment. Lensa testifies, “the old lady filmed it on her phone for Alexis to watch on video call.”

THE STORY

Sara* was 20 years old when she arrived in Lebanon on 6 January, 2006. She left behind her family in Manila, Philippines, to start a job as a domestic worker to help support them.

Sara* worked for Ibtissam Alsaadi and Ali AlKhatib for 11 months before escaping on the day they were moving house. She alleges that she was was sexually abused by her employer’s adult sons, Muhammad and Alaaddein. She worked day and night for Ibtissam Alsaadi, who locked her into her bedroom at night, and psychologically abused Sara* Grace in multiple ways.

During her enslavement, Sara* Grace considered suicide as a result of the abuse she suffered. Thirteen years later, she is still traumatised. The Alsaadi-AlKhatib family still owes Sara* five months salary.

Upon arrival in Lebanon, Sara’s new employer Ibtissam Alsaadi met her at Beirut airport and took her to the employment agency where she stayed for one night. Ibtissam took away all her documents, including her passport and a copy of the contract Sara had made for herself. In Manila, she had signed a contract agreeing to a salary of $200 per month. However, upon arrival in Beirut she was told to sign a new contract, stating her salary was $150. “They told me to sign it, but I’m thinking why is it different from the contract I read before,” she says. “I refused to sign, but they told me to sign it. I signed because I was afraid. Everything was confusing and I was scared about what would happen.”

The next day, Ibtissam took Sarato her house to begin work. Her first impressions of Ibtissam were not favourable: “I am not comfortable when I first saw her. I don’t see her as friendly, she don’t even greet me in the airport. She just took me and let me ride in the car.”

The evening of her arrival at their home, Ibtissam gave Sara some food, and then sent her to her room, which she locked until the morning. “She brought me in my room and locked me [inside]. And opened the next morning,” says Sara. “I sleep in my little room, on the floor with only a blanket.

Sara quickly realised that things were very wrong in the Alsaadi-AlKhatib household. “In my first month in their house, I feel uncomfortable because they are not treating me well and they always call me bad words without reason. They always call me in Arabic – stupid, khara [shit], khariye [piece of shit], behimey [a living creature without a brain]..”

Every day she was woken at 5.30am to begin work, with only coffee for breakfast, and lunch at 4.30pm. Sometimes she wasn’t given any dinner, and she worked until 11 or 12 at night. The only break she had was when she ate her lunch. “They gave me food twice a day, sometimes once. I’m taking bread because I’m hungry,” she says.

Every morning Ibtissam Alsaadi would make Lebanese coffee in separate pots for her husband Ali and for Sara. This was only the beginning of what was to come for Sara. She explains: “I saw her putting pink liquid into her husband’s pot of coffee. I asked what it was. She told me it’s for her husband because he has another girl from Sudan. And she cried, and asked me for sympathy.”

Saraalleges that one day Ibtissam asked her to fetch something from the living room whilst she made Sara’s coffee. She turned around to see Ibtissam pouring the same pink liquid into her own coffee cup. “She gave me a cup of coffee with this liquid, same as her husband. I poured it out directly in the sink. I stopped drinking the coffee she’s giving me.” She became very afraid to drink anything, suspecting that her employer was trying to poison her.

Ibtissam’s behaviour continued to get stranger and stranger. “The next thing, she’s telling me to scatter old ashes under the carpet, near the elevator by the front door,” says Sara. One day whilst cleaning her room, Sara found ashes under her own bed. Ibtissam would ask her to disperse ashes regularly under the carpet and near the elevator, adding to her already large workload. And presumably, it was yet another way to control Sara and to ensure that she remained afraid, and submissive and obedient.

“I’m still holding the trauma of those 11 months” “I’m still not healed from now. I start shaking when they open the topic about it.” – Sara

In July 2006, a 34-day war began between Lebanon and Israel. The Embassy of the Philippines assembled all Filipino nationals in Lebanon at the Embassy during this time. However, Ibtissam, whose family background was Syrian, took Sara to Syria. They stayed there for three months. According to Ibtissam’s Facebook profile, she has three siblings who live in Damascus.

Sara’s life in Syria was harder than in Beirut. “In Syria, her house is three stories and I am cleaning it all by myself. I am cleaning her sister’s house and her son Muhammad’s house also.” She was not remunerated for all the additional work she was made to do. After the war, Ibtissam brought her back to Lebanon.

Ibtissam commits more venomous acts to control her employee

Sara recounts how one day Ibtissam took her to a male hairdresser in a bizarre act of spite, under the guise that she was taking her for a regular haircut. Upon arrival, she was surprised to arrive at a men’s hair salon. The barber made her stand on a chair, and he cut her waist-long hair into a short, man’s style. “I was so sad, even in this little thing which she steal from me,” she says. Ibtissam then told her: “It’s ok, because your hair is not good and we must make [cut] it.” Back at her employer’s house, all the children began to tease her about her new haircut. She began to question why her employer was trying to hurt her and control her. “She slapped me like she want to kill me,” says Sara, in tears.

Sara had limited contact with Ibtissam’s husband Ali AlKhatib. Once he asked her to prepare some food for him, but she was often told by one of the five children to avoid Ali. “Whenever he was coming, they told me, go to the balcony. I waited there, even in winter when it was freezing. I had to just wait there standing until they told me mister went away.”

Ibtissam’s sons sexually abuse Sara

Ibtissam and Ali have five children: Muhammad, Alaaddein, Kinda, Sarah and Amir. Like their mother, they abused Sara to different degrees. In her testimony, Sara describes her suffering at their hands.

The eldest son, Muhammad, would frequently ask Sara to bring tubs of water to the bathroom while he was showering. He would be fully naked. The first time it happened, he called her back to the bathroom after she had gone to the kitchen, in shock. “I’m scared, I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what he will do to me and nobody is at home.” Kinda returned home and asked what the pot of water was for, and Sara explained that Mohammad had asked her to bring the water to him while he showered.

Sara says that Alaaddein, the second son, sexually and physically abused her. “Alaa is so cruel. He would ask me to find his glasses, quickly. And he would grab a wooden chair, gonna hit me [if she didn’t get them quickly enough].” Then one day, things took a turn for the worse. When the house was empty, he decided to prey on Sara. “My madam, she is not around, he come out of the kitchen and he sees that nobody is in the house and he goes back to his room and shouts ‘Sara, come, bring me a glass of water.’ Then he told me to come near and lay on his bed. And he started to touch my body and told me ‘I will teach you how to make massage’. He touched my back and my private parts, and then I started to cry and I said, please, no sir.”

Sara is visibly very distressed and crying as she recounts her abuse. She left the room but Alaaddein called her back in. “He told me to press his body, and he said ‘don’t ever write it down in a letter for your family in the Philippines’. After this incident, he continued to verbally abuse Sara and threaten her. “He started to be cruel to me, like he wants to hit me, and he’s a very big guy. I was afraid he might hurt me or I might get paralysed,” she says. She describes how Alaaddein constantly bullied her, threw footballs at her and hit her with hangers.

Other Filipino workers in neighbouring houses would communicate with Sarab y passing her notes telling her about the family and its previous workers. The notes recounted how a former employee, Norcia, was also abused by the family. They also locked her inside the house, alone, or with Alaaddein. Whilst cleaning, Sara once came across Norcia’s medical papers, and saw that she had had broken joints. Sara was frightened; what had happened to Norcia whilst working for the family? Her thoughts turned to suicide as a way to escape her employers. “I thought about drinking medicine to die as quickly as possible, and heal this trauma,” she says.

Sara’s parents would sometimes try to call her employer’s home. She says she wasn’t allowed to contact her family and her employers didn’t send home her salary regularly. To this day, she is owed five months of her salary. She only realised after she left that her family had been writing her letters which her employers had prevented her from seeing. Sara’s family had also not received any of the letters she had written them. It was yet another malicious act to ensure Sara remained under their control.

Sara escapes her enslavement

Sara finally managed to escape the clutches of the Alsaadi-AlKhatib family on the day they were moving apartments. It was 10am, and Ibtissam was busy talking on the phone, and Alaaddein was asleep. She tried the main door, and for once it wasn’t locked. She quickly gathered her papers, her contract and a photocopy of her passport, and left the house. “I walked down the stairs from the fourth floor, and after that I ran.”

She flagged down a taxi, and begged the driver to help her get to the Embassy of the Philippines. She told him she was being abused by her employers. “He told me, come, we will find it for you. He asked every shop where the embassy was. When I saw the flag of the Philippines, I cried because I was so happy. When I tried to pay the driver with the coins I had in my pocket, he refused, and said ‘god will give it to me.’”

Two days later, Ibtissam came to the embassy to try to get her employee back. She even went so far as to hire a Filipno woman to attempt to lure Sara back, with the promise of $500, a day off every weekend, a salary increase, and a new phone and sim card. Sara refused flat out. The next day, Ibtissam’s husband Ali AlKhatib came to the embassy. “He told me, come back to me, come to our house. I’ll give you food from my hands to your mouth.” When Sara refused to come back with him, he told her: “Hear me, you’re a hemara (donkey) and a fool.”

After her stay at the embassy, Sara was taken to NGO Caritas. Yet again, Ibtissam attempted to get her slave back. This time she came alone. “She wanted to take me. She told me, I can let you work for another family but you need to pay me $5,000.” Sara was advised by the embassy that she had two options: be deported to the Philippines, or find a new employer. She decided on the latter, and worked part time for UN workers. “They treat me well, they are helpful and kind. I work for Swiss, Croatian and Portuguese, Spanish, Irish..”

Each time the embassy and Caritas contacted Ibtissam Alsaadi, she insisted that her former employee had to pay her $5,000 before she could release her from the contract. Sara continued to work in Lebanon, and in 2013 she filed a complaint through Caritas, and was allocated a lawyer who contacted Ibtissam Alsaadi on her behalf. But Ibtissam was still asking for $5,000.

Meanwhile, Sara was following the case of Halima, her successor who was enslaved and abused by Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family for a decade. She questioned why the staff of the Embassy of the Philippines had met the Alsaadi-AlKhatib family in a restaurant in Raouche, and not at the embassy.

In April 2017, Sara heard that staff changes had taken place at the Embassy of the Philippines, so she decided to try her luck once more. She filed a second complaint, and requested to return home to the Philippines. Sara paid a $2,200 penalty to Ibtissam Alsaadi in return for her papers. At the embassy, she says she encountered many women in similar situations to her own. “There were a lot of other runaways, same as me with different employers but nearly the same experience as me. Maltreatment, lack of food, no salary, even lack of room in the house. They’re asking also for justice.”

She ends her testimony with thanks, and a warning: “I invite you, please don’t go to Lebanon. I know there is still good employers there but I heard a lot of people who are still there and suffering. You are lucky if you survive. You need to be strong. If you still continue [to go to Lebanon], please be brave and don’t let anyone put you down. We are human and we are the ones who can stop human slavery and trafficking.

“I want justice for the Alsaadi-AlKhatib family. I want them to be in jail and be punished by law, and be banned from taking any house maid from any country. I want justice for the damage they did to me and Halima.”

MEET THE ABUSERS

These are the abusers and those who looked onto Sara’s abuse and chose to participate or help Ibtisaam Saadi cover it up.

“I’m still holding the trauma of those 11 months” – Sara

FEATURED ABUSER

Ibtissam Alsaadi

Ibtissam Abdul Hamid Alsaadi

A serial abuser, slave owner and psychopath. Psychologically and physically abused her employees. Kept Halima as a slave for ten years.

Of Syrian origin, with at least three family members still in Damascus. Has tried, unsuccessfully, to run as a member of parliament in Lebanon since 2004, for the Sunni parliamentary seat in the district of Baalbek and Hermel. Ibtissam Alsaadi is known for being closely connected to Lebanon’s political elite. She has previously been photographed with President Michel Aoun, as well as high-ranking leaders of the Maronite church.

She has a degree and background in political science, and has been active in social work for the past two decades. She has previously expressed that she believes that women should participate in elections and democratic battles in order to reach their representation in the best way.

Despite her alleged extensive abuse of her own employees, Ibtissam’s name was put forward as a potential Minister for Women in the new Lebanese government, formed in early 2019.

“My career in charity work continues without greed for a high position” – from Ibtissam’s campaign poster.

“Entering the political arena should not be limited to men; men and women share all life decisions, so why not extend the sharing to political decisions, developmental work and services.”

The People

Muhammad AlKhatib

Alaaddein ‘Alaa’ Alkhatib

Amir AlKhatib

Kinda Alkhatib

Ali AlKhatib

Sarah AlKhatib

THE VIDEO

Fe explains how Bassam Abdel Hadi, owner of Monroe Hotel Beirut and Crystal Spa, cheats and denigrates his workers.

THE STORY

Loriefe (Fe) Durato was employed as a domestic worker in the home of Bassam Abdel Hadi and Reem Yacoub Abdel Hadi from 1 October 2016 to 13 August 2018, after which she fled to the Embassy of the Philippines. The Abdel Hadis own the Crystal One Spa in the four-star Monroe Hotel in downtown Beirut. In total, the Abdel Hadis owe Fe $2,000. For two years they neglected to renew her work and residence permit, which meant she could have been imprisoned at any time.

Fe contacted This Is Lebanon via Facebook in April 2019 to seek help, as she had been sent home to the Philippines with almost 6 months of unpaid salary. Three months’ worth of this had been paid to the agent, something which was declared illegal by the Ministry of Labour in 2007.

Fe was afraid, because 10 other Filipinos who had previously worked at the spa were imprisoned for 3 months. She suspected that their imprisonment was because the Abdel Hadis hadn’t renewed their work permits either, and she didn’t want to end up in prison like them.

Fe told This Is Lebanon that the Abdel Hadis often didn’t have cash, and that she herself paid for deliveries that they had ordered. The Abdel Hadis still owe Fe 10,000 LL ($7) for manoushes (a traditional Lebanese dough-based food, similar to pizza) which she’d paid for because the Abdel Hadis had no money to pay the delivery man.

Fe faced other difficulties whilst working for the Abdel Hadis. Shortly before fleeing to the embassy, Fe alleges that she found that $200 had been taken from her closet by Bassam Abdel Hadi. It had been hidden underneath her clothes. After that, she put a lock on her closet. Reem Abdel Hadi also did not provide all the personal items, such as clothing and hygiene products, she was required to under the terms of the domestic worker’s contract.

This Is Lebanon contacted Bassam Abdel Hadi via WhatsApp, requesting that he pay Fe $800 for 2 months she worked unpaid, plus $1200 for the 3 months he caused her to stay in a safe house. He responded, alleging that Fe had run away with a boyfriend and that “such a maid should be punished for what she did.” When This Is Lebanon asked him for copies of her residence permit, he refused, saying, “stop annoying me. I don’t have to show you anything.” He then blocked us.

We wrote to Reem Yacoub Abdel Hadi saying: “Your husband just made a very unwise decision. Blocking us is not going to solve your problem. It is better to talk. If you did, indeed, do her papers on time each year than you are in the right and this story can be stopped immediately. Please send us a pic of the iqama (work permit) so I can see who is telling the truth. We are giving you an opportunity to show you are right.”

Reem responded that she did “everything and more than everything that this girl needs, and that each girl that works in the house is the most lucky girl ever, and about her papers, she has only one missing year.”

After our conversation, Reem contacted Fe and said she hadn’t sent the salary because she had lost her phone with Fe’s contact details. She had promised to send the salary after Fe returned home. Fe told us that was a lie, and that Reem had seen her messages and not responded, even after she’d told her she needed the money to register her kids in school and help with her father’s hospital bill.

Nevertheless, because of Reem’s promise to put things right, we held off posting. By June 2019 there was still no payment, so we contacted Bassam from a different number. The image to the right is his response.

Fe fled to the embassy for protection; she did not run off with a boyfriend. She did not steal anything from the Abdel Hadi’s house. This is one of the most common accusations. Time and again, domestic workers who escape abusive working conditions are accused of theft and end up doing prison time when they are the victims, not the criminals.

The Abdel Hadis have left us with no option but to post about them. May this serve as a warning to them and others who choose to keep workers undocumented. What would have happened if Fe had had an accident and required hospitalization?

Meet The Abusers

“There is 10 girls working in the spa [who] went in jail. They stayed 3 months in jail.” – Fe

Bassam Abdel Hadi

Owner of Crystal One Spa at Monroe Hotel. Described paying the employment agency $7,000 “to bring this bitch and work at our house not to run away.”

Reem Yacoub Abdel Hadi

After reaching out to Reem, she told Fe that “I really want to pay you” and “don’t worry about the money.” However, they seem to be false promises as she had not even renewed her work permit.

Crystal One Spa

Owned by Bassam Abdel Hadi. You can be confident the earnings do not go towards ensuring all of his employees are paid and on current visas.

Monroe Hotel Beirut

Host of Crystal One Spa. What do they think of their tenants?

TAKE ACTION

We can’t do this alone. We need your help! Join us in this fight.

Review on FB

Tell Monroe hotel what you think of Crystal One Spa’s owner’s treatment of domestic workers.

GO TO MONROE FB

Review on Google

Let any potential visitors on Google know the truth about the owner of Crystal One Spa.

GO TO GOOGLE REVIEWS

Contact the Abusers

Talk to Bassam and Reem and plead with them to pay their workers and treat them properly.

CONTACT ABUSERS

Share the Story

Tell others about this. Join us in the fight to ensure that this cannot go unnoticed.

START HERE

Halima: 10 Years in Slavery to Ibtissam Alsaadi

Halima was a slave for Ibtissam Saade for 10 whole years – not a single phone call to her husband and three young daughters. Constant physical and verbal abuse.

THE DOCUMENTARY

A story of heartache and hope.

THE STORY

False promises: “Halima, when you go home, we will give you all your salary.”

Halima Ubpah was 28 years old when she came to Lebanon in 2007 from a remote village close to Cotobato in the southern Philippines. She was employed as a domestic worker for Ali AlKhatib and Ibtissam Alsaadi, a couple who live in Ramlet el Bayda, Beirut. Ibtissam is a Lebanese women’s rights advocate; she has run for parliament multiple times since 2004. Ibtissam and her family have close connections with high-ranking politicians and officials in both Lebanon and Syria.

Halima left behind her husband, and three daughters, aged two, five and seven. With a promised monthly salary of $100, the sum that Halima was to earn would have been a fortune for her and her family, who lived in abject poverty. But instead, she ended up enslaved by Ibtissam Alsaadi for ten years.

This Is Lebanon estimates that Halima is still owed over $40,000, to cover her unpaid salary, her flights home, and compensation for her suffering. It was only after Halima’s concerned family contacted This Is Lebanon that Halima was eventually freed. But not before her slave owners went online and tried to cover up their enslavement of Halima by posting a series of lies, including false testimonies they forced Halima to provide.

“They did not want me to call my family because they thought I would tell them what they were doing to me.” – Halima

BREAKDOWN OF MONEY OWED

Years 1-2 @ $100 / mo

$2,400

Years 3-4 @ $150 / mo

$3,600

Years 5-6 @ $250 / mo

$6,000

Years 7-8 @ $300 / mo

$7,200

Years 9-10 @ $400 / mo

$9,600

Cash Instead of Annual Leave

$1,200

Pain & Suffering

$10,000

4 Return Air Tickets @ $1,229 each

$4,916

Total

$44,916

HALIMA’S DAUGHTER

INTRODUCTION

Here is her story…

When Halima arrived in Lebanon in August 2007, she managed to speak to her family once, and sent home $300 shortly after. Then her family stopped hearing from her, and Halima never sent home any money again in ten years.

In her video testimony, filmed by This Is Lebanon in her hometown in the Philippines, Halima recounts how she suffered ongoing physical and verbal abuse at the hands of Ibtissam Alsaadi and her children. Halima says she worked from the moment she woke up, to the minute she was locked in to her room at night.

Yes, you read that right: her employer, Ibtissam Alsaadi, would lock her into her room at night. She had no way of escaping her abusers, and she was not even allowed to use the toilet apart from when her employers allowed her to. She suffered the indignity of having to relieve herself in her room. “She thought her husband might come to me, and she is a very jealous woman,” says Halima by way of explanation. “Once I was locked in my room, I couldn’t make a sound.”

Halima escapes poverty but ends up enslaved

Halima was, and remains to this day, entirely illiterate. Her remote, underdeveloped village is so poor that there is only one building made of concrete, belonging to a woman who previously worked in the Gulf. The rest of the houses are wooden shacks. The main export of the village is its women, who go to work in the Middle East.

ENSLAVED

Halima: A Story of Poverty to Kafala Slavery

There is no electricity or running water, and only one house has a toilet. There is no food security where Halima is from – people live from hand to mouth. For these reasons, the women there continue to leave their families behind to try to earn a living working as housemaids in the Middle East.

The fact that Halima is illiterate is a crucial part of her story. She could not access a phone to text anyone, or even pass a handwritten note to ask for help from anyone she came across. But opportunities for contact with the outside world were scarce; she says that she was kept locked inside the house most of the time, so the people she met were far and few between.

The only way her family could contact her was by calling her employers’ house phone. Halima’s husband, Ginaid Kasem, sacrificed a great deal in trying to contact his wife. As there was no electricity in his village, he had to travel miles to the closest town to call Halima from a pay phone. With the little money he had, he would call his wife’s employers and ask to speak to her. Each time, Ibtissam Alsaadi would either keep him on hold until his phone card ran out, or tell him that Halima was unavailable.

“Sometimes they would say ‘your wife is coming’, and at other times they would answer, but not say anything,” says Ginaid. Every single time, his money would run out without him having spoken to his wife, and he would have to make the long trek home.

Halima says she spent all day, every day, cleaning up after Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family, and in return being physically and verbally abused by them. Halima was on call 24/7, she didn’t get any time off, and she suffered profound physical abuse at the hands of Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family. When she explains, it’s clear she is visibly distressed at the memory, and tears roll down her face: “My madam, for the smallest, tiniest mistake would slap me.” She points out the scars from where her employer scratched her neck with her nails.

Another time, Ibtissam Alsaadi allegedly struck Halima with a mop while Halima was cleaning the balcony. Halima’s legs are covered in scars. She recounts how once she was making coffee and she spilled some on the stove. Ibtissam told her: “Halima, why didn’t you see this? Where is your brain?” She then allegedly threw the boiling coffee over Halima, which left extensive scars on her legs.

Almost all of Halima’s nails are brown and black, badly damaged from cleaning. “They didn’t let me use gloves,” she says. “The madam told me, no, you don’t need to have gloves, because you are just a maid here.” Halima adds that Ibtissam Alsaadi would frequently threaten to kill her if she didn’t complete her tasks quickly enough.

Halima was also abused by other family members. She recounts how one of the sons, Alaaddein (Alaa), would punch her. “When Alaa ordered me to do something, he expected it to be done instantly. And if I wasn’t fast enough, he punched me and slapped me.” She alleges that once he hit her with a large piece of wood and fractured her right arm. “It got very big and swollen. I couldn’t move it. They put something on it.” [referring to a cast].

Once when Alaa was hitting Halima, Ibtissam Alsaadi’s husband Ali tried to help her. He said: “Alaa, don’t do that because Halima is like family,” explains Halima. Then Alaa asked his father: “Why? Is she your daughter? Is she family?” Ali AlKhatib told his son to leave Halima alone, and that he felt sorry for her. But the abuse continued.

In our documentary filmed in her hometown, Halima explains how her thoughts turned to dying as a means of getting out of the household: “I wanted to escape, but how could I? They always locked me in the house. I thought of committing suicide, but then I thought of my children,” she says whilst crying. Even when Halima washed the family’s cars outside on the street, her employer would watch her from a balcony above to ensure she did not run away.

FAMILY MURDER

Muhammad AlKhatib’s maid dies under suspicious circumstances

To add another twist to the horrors Halima had already suffered, she told us about an Ethiopian woman, Teplaits, who had worked for Ibtissam Alsaadi’s son, Muhammad AlKhatib. Teplaits died under suspicious circumstances. Halima alleges that Muhammad took her to his house, so she could be a witness in case the police questioned him about Teplaits’ death.

“I saw Teplaits because Muhammad took me to the house. I saw the dead body on the ground. He took me there so that if the police asked about her, I could be a witness to say she had not been murdered.”

Halima Testifiest to Muhammad AlKhatib's Maid's Suspicious Death

Halima says that before Teplaits died, she had spoken to her of her suffering. “She was having a hard time taking care of the children. And her madam was bad. That’s what she told me. Her madam was always getting mad at her,” says Halima. Teplaits told her she wanted to escape because the situation was so difficult.

Before arriving at his house, Halima says that Muhammad told her Teplaits was dead. When she asked how Teplaits had died, he told her that she had jumped from the second floor. “I asked him if she was still alive. He told me ‘no, she’s dead’. I asked why he didn’t take her to the hospital, but he said it was too late, she was gone. Her skull was broken, and her legs were lacerated,” Halima recounts.

Note how we explained earlier that Halima is entirely illiterate. After ten years in Lebanon, although she understood Arabic, she barely spoke a word. This was another key tactic used by her employers, to keep her helpless and unable to communicate with the outside world, and to exclude her from conversations. Her English was also very minimal.

She was treated like a machine, and only taught what language was necessary for her to be able to serve her slave owners. Despite their efforts to exclude her from Arabic conversations, after ten years of slavery Halima had picked up enough Arabic to understand when the family sat around the dining room table discussing whether to kill her or not. She was also able to understand when they continually told her that her husband had remarried. In fact, he remained faithful to her the whole time she was away, and never gave up hoping she was still alive.

EMBASSY MEETING

A meeting with the Embassy of the Philippines

Halima’s husband contacted This Is Lebanon in early 2017, and so we began putting pressure on Halima’s employers to pay her. They eventually agreed to a meeting with staff from the Embassy of the Philippines. It took place on 6 June 2017, at a restaurant in Raouche, between Ibtissam Alsaadi, her children, Halima, and embassy staff.

Philippine Embassy Meets With Halima and Ibtisaam and Forcers Her Silence

Before the meeting, Halima says that she was carefully instructed by her employers on what to say. When the embassy staff asked Halima if she had received her salary, she had to say yes. “My madam told me what to say, and I did whatever she told me, because if I didn’t, she said she would kill me,” says Halima.

Meanwhile, This Is Lebanon kept putting pressure on Halima’s employers to pay her what she was owed. We did this by posting about the Alsaadi-AlKhatib family.

The eldest son Alaaddein AlKhatib responded point by point to Tahis Is Lebanon’s accusations about his family’s treatment of Halima.

He commented on our Facebook post:

Halima is alive and not a slave, as we treat her as a family’s member, not as the website said, or wink from it.
Halima is in contact with her family on a monthly basis, she usually call her father every two months and her sister that works in Saudi Arabia every month.
Halima is a good person that is the reason why my parents asked her to extend the duration of the work contract with us and she accepted that, not as the website mentioned that we misbehaved with her.
All of Halima’s legal papers from the General Security, the Ministry of work, and the insurance card, and even her passport had been renewed from the Philippines embassy, and issued in a right way as it should be.
Halima still works with us in our home for the last ten years.
We had three weeks schedule meeting that took place yesterday in Raouche area with two embassy’s staff and Halima was with us, and she was the subject of the meeting, not as the website mentioned that we had been under pressure and respond after that.
Halima got half of her salaries and she saved the other half for the duration she worked with us, so when she gets back to her country will be able to open a small project.
The Philippines embassy staff, asked Halima why she didn’t send her family money, and her response was, she didn’t want to spend on her husband that he got married during this period.
Halima and my mom had agreed three months ago that she will travel back to her country in August this year.
To show that we are transparent, we shared the embassy meetings’ pictures with a journalist asked about Halima via phone, to appear later that she works for the website that start attacking us yesterday
We had done nothing break the law or the humanity rules, we always stand for the rights and the laws of every human

His points raised many questions. Yes, Halima was alive. But why did her family not know this? If she had worked as a normal domestic worker, with all the proper papers in place, why was there a need for a meeting with the embassy staff? Why had her employers not shown any proof that her salary had been paid, and that her work and residence permits were in order?

Halima’s sister, who worked in Saudi Arabia, responded saying that Halima had only ever called home once and remitted money once shortly after she had arrived in Lebanon, and that the Embassy of the Philippines had told them Halima would go home after Ramadan. Furthermore, Halima’s husband had not remarried, as attested by her siblings, children and husband.

By early July 2017, Halima had still not been released. Her family sent a video testimony pleading for her to be able to come home. Meanwhile, Halima continued to work for Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family, as they wanted her to remain to serve them during the month of Ramadan. Halima had still not been able to speak to her family.

The Alsaadi-AlKhatib family then released some photos of Halima at Ibtissam’s birthday celebration, to try to show that Halima had been treated as a family member and not a slave. In This Is Lebanon’s documentary, Halima responds: “They are liars. Because I was about to go home, they took me out to try and convince people they were good to me, but it was all pretend. Ibtissam [only ever] took me out after it was confirmed that I was going home.”

The family also released a video showing Halima – without headscarf, dressed in a tank top and shorts, despite being a conservative Muslim – waving at the camera and addressing her family, saying she was fine. In another video, supposedly at a party put on for Halima’s birthday, she is cutting a cake and the family are singing to her. Halima says it was the first time the family had shown any such gesture.

Between July 2017 until she left in early October 2017, Halima remained in the household working for her employers. In September 2017, Halima – who as we mentioned was entirely illiterate – was forced to sign an affidavit falsely stating she was paid her full salary; that her employers treated her well and took her out often, and that she didn’t transfer money home because her husband had remarried and had a child. The affidavit was also translated into Tagalog, which Halima cannot read or write.

Halima finally left Lebanon on 5 October, 2017. But not before her former slave owner could get in one last vile act. Ibtissam packed Halima’s bag for her. Halima had another bag of items which she really wanted to send home, and she paid $150 to do so. This bag never arrived. When she arrived in Manila and opened the bag Ibtissam had packed for her, she found used sanitary towels in it.

Halima was the fourth domestic worker to be enslaved by Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family. The one before Halima, Sara*, was sexually molested by Ibtissam and Ali’s sons. According to a relative of Ibtissam’s, who contacted us on Facebook, the worker before Sara* managed to escape by jumping from the balcony onto the neighbour’s balcony.

Halima was eventually freed thanks to public pressure from This Is Lebanon’s Facebook page. She suffered ten years of enslavement at the hands of Ibtissam Alsaadi. She has yet to be paid the full amount she is owed. She will never be able to make up for the ten years she missed out on her children growing up. She is left with the scars of the abuse she suffered. The Alsaadi-AlKhatib family considers themselves untouchable and above any sort of justice. Will these slave owners be brought to justice?

#JusticeForHalima #EndKafala

THE TIMELINE

12 August 2007

28-year-old Halima arrives in Lebanon from a village near Cotobato, a remote area in the southern Philippines, to work for Ali AlKhatib and Ibtissam Alsaadi. The family lives in Ramlet el Bayda, Beirut. Halima leaves behind a husband and three daughters, aged two, five and seven.

Halima Leaves Her Family: Becomes a Slave in Lebanon

22 August 2007

Halima’s husband Ginaid Kasem receives a call from her. After that, he never hears from his wife again. “Many, many people from inside and outside the Philippines tried to call her over the last ten years but Ibtissam Alsaadi always said “she’s not here”, “she’s out of town” – endless excuses,” says Ginaid. In the whole ten years, Halima only ever sends home $300, equivalent to a month’s salary.

Halima's Husband Pleads to Talk to Her in Slavery at Ibtisaam Saade

January 2017

Ginaid Kasem contacts This Is Lebanon, asking if we can help him track down his wife Halima. He hasn’t heard from her for almost a decade.

6 June 2017

This Is Lebanon manages to track down Halima. She has been enslaved for ten years by Ibtissam Alsaadi, an aspiring politician. The Embassy of the Philippines is put in direct contact with Halima’s employers.

Women's Rights Don't Apply to Kafala Workers for Ibtisaam Saade

Week #1 of June, 2017

Halima, her employers and two embassy staff members meet at a restaurant in Raouche. Halima is coached beforehand by Ibtissam Alsaadi on what to say when the embassy staff ask her how she is, and whether she had been paid. Halima says: “They told me ‘Halima, if they ask if you got your money, say yes.’ The staff asked me if I got money and if I was fine. I said yes, I was fine and they started talking to Alaa. I wasn’t allowed to talk further to the embassy staff. They only spoke to Ibtissam and Alaa.”

11 June 2017

Alaaddein AlKhatib posts a series of responses online, alleging that Halima is not a slave and that she is well treated, speaks to her family often, that her papers are all in order, and that she’s been paid regularly (and is also saving money). He doesn’t provide any evidence to back up his statements – no proof of payment, no legal documents. He falsely claims that Halima didn’t want to send money back home because her husband had remarried (he had not).

Alaaddein AlKhatib Attempts to Defend Ibtisaam Saade for Enslavement of Halima

Ramadan 2017

(26 May – 24 June)

Halima has to stay to serve Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family throughout the holy month.

Halima Goes Out With Ibtisaam's Family as a Showcase

2 July 2017

Halima’s family plead for her release: “We want our mom to come home. We miss our Mom. We did not see her or talk to her for ten years. We need and love our mom. Please send her back home.”

30 July 2017

Privately one of the children of the Alsaadi-AlKhatib family send This Is Lebanon threatening messages.

Alsaadi-AlKhatib Family Send Threatening Messages to Silence Halima Story

July – September 2017

This Is Lebanon continues to put pressure on the family to send Halima home.

26 September 2017

Halima, who is completely illiterate, is forced to sign an affidavit falsely stating she was paid her full salary; that her employers treated her well and took her out often, and that she didn’t transfer money home because her husband remarried and had a child. The affidavit was also translated into Tagalog, which Halima cannot read or write.

Halima Forced to Sign Affidavit to Cover for Ibtisaam's Enslavement

3 October 2017

Eldest son Alaaddein AlKhatib releases a video in which Halima repeats the date after him, and states that she’s gotten all the money she is owed from Ibtissam Alsaadi, and that she will travel back to the Philippines soon.

On the same day, Halima wires home $4,500.

Halima Sends Home $4,500 Day Before She is Sent Home

5 October 2017

Halima travels back to the Philippines. Before she travels, Ibtissam Alsaadi takes Halima’s shoes and replaces them with a pair of flip flops.

Ibtisaam Saadi Pressured to Release Halima from Enslavement

MEET THE ABUSERS

These are the abusers and those who looked onto Halima’s abuse and chose to participate or help Ibtisaam Alsaadi cover it up.

“I wanted to escape but how could I? They always locked me in.” – Halima

FEATURED ABUSER

Ibtissam Alsaadi

Ibtissam Abdul Hamid Alsaadi

A serial abuser, slave owner and psychopath. Psychologically abused her employees. Kept Halima as a slave for ten years, and Sara* as a slave for 11 months.

Ibtissam is of Syrian origin, with family members still in Damascus. She has tried, unsuccessfully, to run as a member of parliament in Lebanon since 2004, for the Sunni parliamentary seat in the district of Baalbek and Hermel.

She has a degree and background in political science, and has been active in social work for the past two decades. Has previously expressed that she believes that women should participate in elections and democratic battles in order to reach their representation in the best way.

Despite her alleged extensive abuse of her own employees, Ibtissam’s name was put forward as a potential Minister for Women in the new Lebanese government, formed in early 2019.

Ibtissam Alsaadi is known for being closely connected to Lebanon’s political elite. She has previously been photographed with President Michel Aoun, as well as high-ranking leaders of the Maronite church.

“My career in charity work continues without greed for a high position” – from Ibtissam’s campaign poster

“Entering the political arena should not be limited to men; men and women share all life decisions, so why not extend the sharing to political decisions, developmental work and services.” – Ibtissam Alsaadi

Meet The People

Alaaddein AlKhatib, Physical Abuser and Sexual Harraser

Alaaddein ‘Alaa’ AlKhatib

Muhammad AlKhatib

Amir AlKhatib

Kinda AlKhatib

Ali AlKhatib

Sarah Kasandra/AlKhatib, Daughter of Abuser Ibtissam Alsaadi

Sarah AlKhatib

TAKE ACTION

We can’t do this alone. We need your help! Join us in this fight.

Contact the Abusers

Talk to Ibtissam Alsaadi and her family to plead with them to pay Halima her salary from the years in slavery.

START HERE

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Tell others about this. Join us in the fight to ensure that this cannot go unnoticed.

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Eleanore Couture Runs a House of Horror #IAmLensa

Lensa reveals all about Eleanore Couture’s abuse and enslavement of migrant domestic workers in order to make their dresses. This story goes far beyond dresses.

THE DOCUMENTARY

See Lensa tell the story of the abuse by Eleanore Couture from her hometown in Ethiopia.

THE STORY

“They smashed my head into the walls. Every hour there was some form of torture.”

Lensa Lelisa Tufa arrived in Lebanon from Ethiopia in July 2017 to work for Eleanore Ajami, a high-end fashion designer and owner of Eleanore Couture. The brand is known internationally, and its dresses have been worn by a host of high-profile celebrities, including singer Carrie Underwood and X-Men star Lana Condor.

As she states in multiple testimonies, 21-year old Lensa was abused from the very beginning of her time in Lebanon. She says she was beaten up daily by her employers who threatened that if she didn’t finish her work quickly enough, she would be beaten further.

Lensa says: “They beat me every day with an electric cable and wrapped my hair around their hands and dragged me around the room. They smashed my head into the walls. Every hour there was some form of torture.”

“As long as you are in my country, I can do what ever I want to you” – Eleanore Couture

Upon arrival, Lensa says that she spoke to her family once and then wasn’t allowed to contact them for 4 months. Her employer, Eleanore Ajami, told Lensa after six months that she had sent her salary directly to her family in Ethiopia, although she never showed her any proof of this. And because Lensa wasn’t allowed to contact her family, there was no way to verify what Eleanore was saying.

In the six months following her arrival in Lebanon, Lensa’s aunt, Ganet, who also worked in Beirut, tried to contact her via Eleanor Ajami. But each time Ganet called, Eleanore told her Lensa was too busy to talk, and not to call again. Ganet meanwhile received a call from Lensa’s mother in Ethiopia, saying she hadn’t received any money or heard any news from Lensa.

CLICK IMAGE TO

FAMILY OF ABUSERS

The entire family were involved in the abuse of Lensa. Many people didn’t believe it because the abuser children were “educated young women.”

Crystal Khalil, Manager at Eleanore Couture's Sweat Shop

Alexis Khalil Co-Owner of Eleanore Couture's Haute Fashion House of Horror

Abuser and Slaveholder of Eleanore Couture, Eleanore Ajami, Referred to The Old Lady

Lensa After Eleanore Couture's House of Horror

Domestic Worker Abuse: A Family Affair

Lensa alleges that 4 family members abused her: Eleanore Ajami, her son Joe Khalil, and daughters Crystel Khalil and Alexis Khalil. “They took turns abusing us. In the morning Joe came, grabbed my hair and dragged me around the room. And he was pushing his fingers into my eyes. He got the scissors and was going to attack me, so I ran away from him. Every day, Crystel came after me with the scissors and tried to cut me. Her mother told her not to do that, so she stopped.”

Lensa explains that she couldn’t tell the Ethiopian Embassy about her situation because the other Ethiopian worker would tell the employer everything. That worker had been there for about 5 years and acted as an informer on Lensa and another young Ethiopian worker.

On 11 March 2018, Lensa decided to try to escape from the second-floor apartment. Her only choice was to jump off the balcony because her employers locked her into the apartment whilst they were out. She broke both legs, her pelvis, her jaw and several teeth upon impact, and was taken to Serhal Hospital where she remained for two weeks.

“They tortured me, and I couldn’t do anything to save myself.” – Lensa

Even during her time in hospital, Lensa’s communication and visitors were strictly controlled by her employers. This Is Lebanon was told by Lensa’s aunt, Ganet: “Whilst in hospital, a Lebanese woman had compassion for Lensa and brought her juice. But this led to a problem with the employers, who told the Lebanese woman not to interfere, and that she had no business giving anything to Lensa.” The woman withdrew from any contact with Lensa and asked an Ethiopian girl caring for an elderly man in the hospital to contact Lensa. Lensa managed to give the Ethiopian girl her mother’s number, who then contacted Lensa’s aunt, Ganet, on 19 March. Ganet went straight to the hospital upon hearing what had happened. Here she filmed Lensa talking about her abuse and suffering.

“The old lady filmed it on her phone for Alexis to watch on video call.” – Lensa

The Attempted Media Cover-up Begins

The video of Lensa lying in her hospital bed, covered in bandages and casts, was shared by This Is Lebanon and went viral, being picked up by international news outlets. Her aunt was allowed one closely supervised visit after her return to the house, during which members of the family were present.

Eleanore Ajami immediately responded to the media denying all allegations, and threatened to sue This Is Lebanon. On 31 March 2018, Eleanore Couture released a video of Lensa through local channel LBC. In the video, filmed in her employers’ home, Lensa retracted her earlier claims of abuse. Lensa said she loved her employers and they loved her, and that she was sorry for any problems she had caused them. She said: “Nobody hurt me, nobody kicked me.” She again recanted her allegations on Rima Karaki’s show on Al Jadeed Television in April. In a humiliating set up in the presence of one of her employers, she was wheeled in on a hospital gurney to make a similar confession.

The deputy Middle East director of Human Rights Watch, Lama Fakih, has said that in cases like Lensa’s there is a high risk of coercion, and investigations must ensure that victims can give accurate accounts of what has happened to them, in a safe location, without fear of retaliation.

“We are deeply concerned that even though Lensa said she feared retaliation and has reported death threats, investigators said they did not provide safety guarantees when they interviewed her,” Fakih has said. “Ensuring victim protection is essential for determining what happened in Lelisa’s case, and to reassure other domestic workers afraid of retaliation if they report abuse.”

A Phony Investigation

The Lebanese Internal Security Forces told Human Rights Watch that they had completed an investigation after speaking with Lensa, another migrant domestic worker in the house, the employers, two forensic doctors, and the Ethiopian Embassy, and sent their report to the prosecutor’s office. However, the Internal Security Forces said they had not provided Lensa with any guarantee of safety or protection to ensure that she was able to speak freely. “It’s the job of the embassy to provide reassurances or guarantees,” an official said.

Human Rights Watch has previously found that Lebanon’s judiciary fails to hold employers accountable for abuses and that security agencies often do not adequately investigate claims of violence or abuse. Two Ethiopian women who visited Lensa at the hospital told Human Rights Watch that Lensa said she did not tell investigators the truth because of her fear of retaliation.

An Ethiopian embassy official told Human Rights Watch it had investigated the case and concluded Lensa fell out of the apartment while cleaning, and that the abuse allegations were not true. Lebanon’s General Directorate of General Security, the agency in charge of foreigners’ entry and residency in Lebanon, also opened an investigation. It is up to the Prosecutor to decide whether to continue the investigation or file charges.

Eleanore Couture did their best to hide the story by taking out injunctions against This Is Lebanon and the other news outlets who shared Lensa’s story with the world and exposed the designers’ human rights abuses.

Due to the pressure from This Is Lebanon, the support of other activists, and the attention of Lebanese and international media outlets, Eleanore Couture sent Lensa home on 2 August 2018. She still has rods in her legs and requires ongoing medical treatment but cannot afford it. She did, however, manage to make it home alive, unlike the two domestic workers per week that are dying.

#IAmLensa #ThisIsLebanon #2PerWeek #AbolishKafala

THE TIMELINE

March 8 2016

Eleanore Couture and Crystel Khalil post on their Facebook timeline: “‘I am eternally grateful to the women before me, who fought for my rights’ #internationalwomensday #womansright #womensempowerment #HeresToEqualityForWomensWorldWide #onedayiwill #eleanorecouture”

Eleanore Couture are Faux Feminists, Abusers and Enslavers Running a Sweat Shop

July 2017

Lensa begins work for the Ajami-Khalil family. She calls home once, and then her family doesn’t hear from her. She doesn’t remit any money home. She says she is physically, verbally and emotionally abused by the family. She is beaten with an electric cable, her head is smashed into walls and she is dragged by her hair. She isn’t allowed out of the house.

August – March 2018

Lensa’s aunt, Ganet, also working in Beirut as a domestic helper, tries to contact Lensa. She is repeatedly told by Eleanore Ajami that Lensa is ‘too busy’ to talk. Lensa is able to occasionally call her mother during this time, but the conversation is always closely monitored and cut. Her mother is very suspicious and tries to ask Lensa about her situation, but Lensa cannot speak freely out of fear of her abusers.

20 February 2018

Eleanore Couture remits $291 as a result of pressure from Lensa’s employment agency.

11 March 2018

Lensa decides to escape after Joe Khalil threatens her for not working quickly enough. Her co-worker, Bortokan, also plans to escape, but abandons this plan after Lensa jumps and breaks both legs, her pelvis, some teeth and her jaw. Lensa is immediately sent to Serhal Hospital.

12 – 19 March 2018

A Lebanese woman notices Lensa and connects her with an Ethiopian who is in the hospital. Lensa gives the Ethiopian her mother’s phone number. She calls and the mother gives her Ganet’s number.

Lensa's Mother Who Pleads for Her Daughter to be Released From Eleanore Couture's Abuse

19 March 2018

When Ganet hears about her niece, she goes to the hospital with other Ethiopians. She is subsequently barred from visiting. After seeing Lensa in the hospital, Ganet contacts the Ethiopian embassy for help.

Lensa's Aunt Ganet Fights Hard to Free Her Daughter From Eleanore Couture

Weekend of March 23

The Ethiopian Embassy visits Lensa and Internal Security comes to investigate on orders of Appellate Public Prosecutor in Mount Lebanon, Judge Sami Sader. Ganet is finally able to secretly visit Lensa in the hospital. The hospital room door is guarded on nearly a 24 hour watch by the Ajami family, but Ganet sneaks in between their shifts in the middle of the night. They film a secret testimony.

Serhal Hospital Guarded by Eleanore Couture to Keep Lensa's Story Hidden

25 March 2018

Ganet has nearly lost hope. Caritas, the forensic doctors, the Ethiopian embassy, and the Internal Security Forces all declare that there was no abuse. In desperation, Ganet contacts This Is Lebanon and shares the video of Lensa’s testimony of abuse. This Is Lebanon puts it on Facebook and it is viewed by hundreds of thousands of people.

27 March 2018

Lensa returns to her employers’ home after doctors sign her out advising a month’s rest. Shortly after, her co-worker Bortokan is deported back to Ethiopia. To this date, no one has been able to contact Bortokan.

29 March 2018

People around the world support the #IAmLensa campaign. Meanwhile, brave activists gather in front of Eleanore Couture’s business to protest the abuses of the Kafala system and show solidarity with Lensa.

31 March 2018

Eleanore Couture releases a video through LBC TV, filmed in their own home, in which Lensa says her employers love her and she loves them, and that she was not abused. Khalil assures viewers there was never any violence committed against Lensa.

2 April 2018

Lensa and Crystel Khalil appear on Rima Karaki’s show on Al Jadeed Television. Lensa is wheeled in on a hospital gurney, makes a confession saying she lied about the abuse, and about jumping off the balcony to escape. Rima claims that she will follow-up with Lensa to ensure she is okay. That never happened. She assures her viewers Lensa will be safe. Prior to the filming of this show, This Is Lebanon presents Al Jadeed with a testimony from Lensa’s family affirming the abuse. Lensa is not given equal representation on the show nor is she offered an interpreter. Her live presence in a hospital bed is humiliating and dehumanising. Meanwhile, she is in fear for her life and the lives of family members in Lebanon and in Ethiopia.

3 April 2018

This Is Lebanon publishes Ganet’s testimony about Lensa’s treatment at Eleanore Couture. She confirms: “They [Eleanore Couture] are lying…they are threatening her.”

4 April 2018

Eleanore Couture remits a further $450 to Lensa’s family. This is contrary to General Security’s report that “[Lensa] has been living in her sponsor’s house for the past seven months, receives her monthly stipend and has not been a victim of ill-treatment.” This brings it to a total of $741 for 9 months’ work, averaging a salary of $82.30 per month.

Second Payment to Lensa by Eleanore Couture for Dress Sweat Shop

5 April 2018

Many fake Facebook profiles begin making a flurry of negative comments on the This Is Lebanon’s Facebook page and in defense of Eleanore Couture. They claim to not be members of the family, but concerned Lebanese citizens.

Eleanore Couture Creates Fake Facebook Accounts to Spread Lies

Mid-April 2018

The Ajami-Khalil family attempt a variety of other ways to make the story disappear. Leneila Khalil (sister-in-law living in Australia), who previously ran the social media of Eleanore Couture, promotes a theory that “[Lensa] tried to jump because she didn’t want to work as a maid any more.” She also promotes another story that Eleanore Couture would fly Lensa back home on 12 May 2018, when she was expected to be “medically fit.”

Leneila Khalil Has Interesting Theory on Lensa's Abuse

12 April 2018

Lensa is assigned Eleanore Ajami’s own attorney, Elias Ghanem, against her will. She is forced to sign legal documents and go to police stations denying any abuse ever happened. The office of attorneys-at-law, Elias Ghanem, Reine Atallah and Pauline Naddaf, file a petition to the Baabda judiciary to have the material about Lensa and Eleanore Couture removed from all places on the web, including Human Rights Watch, Legal Agenda, L’ Orient Le Jour and many more.

Elias Ghanem and Other Fraudulent Attorneys-at-law

17 April 2018

Lensa’s mother makes a desperate plea for Eleanore Couture to send Lensa home. She says: “Her employer had told her that all we want is money, and that she would kill her and send her corpse back home.”

20 April 2018

Lebanese state closes inquiry into Lensa’s case, concluding that Lensa is not a victim of abuse.

Internal Security Forces Blindly Find No Evidence that Eleanore Couture Abused Lensa

15 May 2018

Christelle Hanna Khalil (Crystel Khalil) and Alexis Hanna Khalil lodge a complaint to the General Prosecutor at the Supreme Court in Lebanon against thisislebanon.org.

Lebanon Supreme Court Prosecutor's Erroneous Interpol Request on Behalf of Eleanore Couture

5 June 2018

The Ajamis-Khalils commit a string of perjuries by making false reports under the name of their own victim (Lensa) through the U.S. DMCA law in order to remove the video content of Lensa’s testimony. They take actions such as creating false email addresses and social media accounts in Lensa’s name to make their requests appear more legitimate. In one of the earlier requests, they accidentally put Crystel Khalil’s own phone number (+9613999172).

June 2018

Timo Azhari, The Daily Star journalist, is summoned by the Lebanese Cyber Crimes Bureau and spends 8 hours there. His phone is searched, confidential information from an anonymous source is seized, and he is made to delete his tweets. He is asked to sign a pledge not to speak about the case again, but refuses.

Timo Taken to Court for Speaking Against Eleanore Couture

19 June 2018

Judge Hatoum of the Baabda district court grants the request for removal of all photos, videos or comments relating to Lensa’s employers’ treatment of her on all social media, websites and news channels in Lebanon and abroad, on the grounds that “her reputation and her personal dignity and exceeding the limits of transferring news impartially.”

2 July 2018

Director-General of the Internal Security Forces, Major General Imad Osman, sends a request to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police via Interpol regarding a defamation case. He asks for the Canadian police to “interrogate the owner…for defamation” and to “take a pledge that he would not attack the plaintiffs again by any means.”

Major General Imad Osman Demand for Interrogation

28 July 2018

Under pressure, Rima Karaki makes a public statement regarding her show with Lensa. She has still not visited Lensa. In her defense she claims: “We were the most human and caring show that helped people on and off air without bragging about it.”

Rima Karaki Brags About Not Bragging to Cover for Eleanore Couture

Week of 30 July 2018

Lensa’s aunt, Ganet, goes to the Ethiopian Embassy and fights for Lensa to be freed. The Ethiopian community pressures the embassy to force Eleanore Couture to bring Lensa into the embassy so Ganet can speak to her.

2 August 2018

In the middle of the night, Eleanore Couture puts Lensa on a plane back to Ethiopia. Lensa’s family is notified so late that Lensa’s mother is not able to make it to the airport in time to meet her daughter. Eleanore Couture sends Lensa home with the rest of her salary in an attempt to wipe their hands clean of the event.

Eleanore Couture Tries to Wipe Their Hands Clean in the Middle of the Night

August – October 2018

Lensa is home but she is afraid to talk about what happened due to threats against her family by Eleanore Couture. Before she leaves, they tell Lensa that if she says anything that could ruin their reputation, they will have her family in Ethiopia arrested and Ganet will be arrested in Lebanon and bad things will happen to her.

Lensa is Still Fearfull of Eleanore Couture's Wrath in Ethiopia

11 November 2018

Timo Azhari, journalist at The Daily Star, goes to court for charges of defamation filed against him by Prosecutor Rami Abdallah regarding Eleanore Couture.

April 2019

Lensa signs an affidavit stating the following:

I was enslaved by Eleanore Ajami and Crystel Khalil, hereafter referred to as Eleanore Couture, and forced to act against my will.
Eleanore Couture created fake email accounts and social media profiles using my name, pictures and personal information.

Lensa Confirms Her Slavery in Eleanore Couture's Sweat Shop for Fashion Dresses

25 May 2019

This Is Lebanon breaks silence on Lensa’s release and announces the upcoming release of a documentary. This information has not been released earlier due to security and legal concerns.

This Is Lebanon Breaks the Silence on Eleanore Couture's Abuse of Lensa

30 May 2019

This Is Lebanon releases a documentary about Lensa’s story from slavery to freedom.

04 Feb 2020

Eleanore Couture hires Marwan Ghantous, a “computer expert,” to attempt to shut down the story. He tries the takedown of the This Is Lebanon website through court requests and complains. The web server is taken down for a few hours then transferred to a new host and restored. He failed.

Eleanore Couture Continues to Play the Victim as Slaveholding Dressmakers and Abusers

Present

Lensa still has ongoing medical issues from her abuse and injuries sustained while working for Eleanore Couture. She is unable to pay for her medical treatment.

Lensa in Ethiopia, After Eleanore Couture's Abuse

What will Eleanore Couture do next?

Will those complicit in her abuse and enslavement continue to perpetuate their lies in order to save face?

Meet The Abusers

These are the abusers and those who looked onto Lensa’s abuse and chose to help Eleanore Couture cover it up.

“I have experienced a lot of abuse. Nobody sees me and nobody helps me.” – Lensa

Eleanore Ajami

Founder and owner of Eleanore Couture. Sponsor of Lensa’s employment. Lensa testifies, “the old lady filmed it on her phone for Alexis to watch on video call.”

Crystel Khalil

“Every day Crystel came after me with the scissors and tried to cut me.” Then Crystel wheeled Lensa on a stretcher into the Al Jadeed studio in order to humiliate her in a false confession.

Alexis Khalil

Alexis Khalil gave public assurances that all was good with Lensa and she was in great hands. Unfortunately the opposite was true.

Joe Khalil

“In the morning he came and grabbed my hair, and dragged me round the room. And he was pushing his fingers into my eyes…Every day, he was planning how to attack me.”

Leneila Khalil

Far away in Melbourne, Australia, Leneila hadn’t received the family memo on what to say. Her theory was that Lensa “tried to jump because she didn’t want to work as a maid any more.”

Major General Imad Osman

The Director-General of Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces “received several certificates most notably being in…the fight against cyber crimes.” Evidently his job description also includes: unsuccessfully attempting to do Eleanore Couture’s bidding.

Judge Hatoum

The not-so-honourable Baabda district judge was happy to comply with Eleanore Couture’s request to sign a court order demanding the removal of all evidence from the public forum.

Ethiopian Embassy

Ganet hoped her embassy which is “responsible for [the] Ethiopian Diaspora who are living in Lebanon” would help Lensa. Instead, they turned their backs and spoke out siding with the abusers.

Rima Karaki

Rima brought Lensa onto her show to humiliate her on pan-Arab television. In her own defense for her actions, she made a public statement: “We were the most human and caring show that helped people on and off the air without bragging about it.”

Caritas

Self described as seeking to “ensure that migrants’ rights are respected.” Unfortunately they appear to be ignorant of how to actually do this. They failed to remove her from her abusers for the interview – “Helping Domestic Workers 101.”

Internal Security Forces

Claiming to aim at “countering trafficking, and honoring Lebanon’s obligations towards international resolutions” from top to bottom, they served as pawns of Eleanore Couture’s desperate attempt to hide the story.

Al Jadeed

Al Jadeed TV is one of the most watched broadcasters in Lebanon and in the entire Arab world, and despite the testimony of Lensa and her family, they decided to spend their airtime in assisting with Crystel’s cover-up campaign.

Elias Ghanem

He somehow represented both Eleanore Ajami and Lensa Tufa at the same time. He kept himself very busy taking their money in order to use the courts to cover up the story.

Forensic Doctors

Forensic doctors visited Lensa in Serhal Hospital and concluded there was no evidence of abuse. This conclusion is hardly surprising given that they never find evidence of abuse when migrant domestic workers die in Lebanon.

Marwan Ghantous

A little late to the game, this “computer expert” helped Eleanore Couture try to remove the evidence of their slavery and abuse by making false requests to This Is Lebanon‘s web provider. It only worked for a few hours. He failed. He is also CEO @ Softicare s.a.l, Owner @ MGG & Teacher @ Antonine University.

LBC International - International Frauds When Reporting on Abuse

LBC TV

The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International, widely known as LBCI, is the first private television station in Lebanon. They were personally moved when Crystel told them that she asked Lensa: “Do we hit and abuse you?” and Lensa said “no!”