Etenesh’s Account of Rape and Physical Abuse in Gharifeh
Etenesh was 18 when she went to Lebanon. She was starved and overworked by her first employer, subsequently physically abused and partially scalped by her agent, and allegedly raped by her second employer's son
Worker
Etenesh
Employer & Agent
Hosy Hamdan & Ramez Hamade
THE VIDEO
The employers, agents and police all come together for the abuse against Etenesh.
THE STORY
Etenesh*, an Ethiopian national, aged 18, arrived in Lebanon towards the end of 2018. The name of her first employer is unknown. In Ethiopia, Etenesh was told she would be a housemaid for one family and be responsible for cleaning one house. When she got to Lebanon, she was made to clean her employer’s house and her in-laws’ houses as well. The location was Gharifeh, in the Chouf district.
She was only given food scraps and expired food to eat and was constantly hungry.
This was Etenesh's first contact with her Lebanese agent, Ramez Hamade. Many agents are physically abusive and Ramez was no exception. He punched her, pulled her hair, then stomped on her and ordered her to apologize to her madam. Etenesh complied and got down on her knees and apologized. He then ordered her to follow him to his car which was parked some distance away. All the way to the car he abused her, ripping out a section of her hair. He took her to his house. Ramez’ father was upset by Etenesh’s appearance and asked Ramez why he had beaten her up. Ramez replied that he would “slit her throat and throw her away”. That night Etenesh didn’t sleep at all. Her head was bleeding from the partial scalping. She was in pain and fearful of what Ramez might do to her next. Early the next morning, she escaped from the house and once more went out onto the road looking for help.
The aftermath of Ramez's abuse
An elderly gentleman, Mr. Hamdan senior, saw her on the road and was shocked at her appearance. He took her to his house. Mr. Hamdan had an Ethiopian domestic worker and Etenesh told her her story. Gharifeh is a small village where everyone knows everyone. Mr. Hamdan knew Ramez and called him. Ramez’s mother came and it is unclear what transpired but Etenesh was not sent back with her. Mr. Hamdan snr began to arrange work for Etenesh cleaning other people’s houses while she stayed with him. All went well until he was taken ill and had to go to hospital. His domestic worker accompanied him and stayed with him in the hospital, leaving Etenesh in the house with Mr. Hamdan junior, Hosy, and his children. There were no other women in the house. Hosy told Etenesh that Ramez had called and was coming to pick her up that night. Playing on her fear of Ramez, he told her that he would prevent him from taking her if she slept with him. Etenesh refused. He then dragged her into the bedroom, threw her on the bed and raped her. The next day he raped her again and threatened to kill her if she told the other domestic worker. Etenesh was a virgin at the time of the rape. She became ill.
“My legs became swollen and my face got puffy.” She could not pass urine without extreme pain.
When Mr. Hamdan senior was discharged and returned home, his domestic worker told him that Etenesh was sick and needed a doctor. He took her to a clinic where she was diagnosed with an infection, prescribed medication and sent home. Etenesh did not improve and was still in a lot of pain. The other worker contacted an Ethiopian activist group who arranged for a taxi to pick Etenesh up. She was taken immediately to Rafic Hariri Hospital. Red Cross covered the cost of her 3 day hospital stay. She needed subsequent medical care. Eventually she was repatriated to Ethiopia. Activists covered the cost of the fine paid to General Security and paid for her airfare. This Is Lebanon did not publish this story earlier in order to protect the other domestic worker. She is now home and it is safe to publish.
The employers, the agent, and the police were all part of Etenesh’s tragedy. This is kafala. This is Lebanon.
*name changed to protect her identity.
The People
“My legs became swollen and my face got puffy.” - Etenesh
Hosy Hamdan
Ramez Hamade
Etenesh
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القصة
وصلت "إيتنيش"، وهي مواطنة إثيوبية تبلغ من العمر 18 عاماً، إلى لبنان في أواخر عام 2018. اسم صاحب عملها الأول غير معروف. قالوا لـ "إيتنيش." في إثيوبيا أنها ستكون عاملة منزل لأسرة واحدة وستكون مسؤولة عن تنظيف منزل واحد. عندما وصلت إلى لبنان، أُجبِرت على تنظيف منزل صاحبة عملها ومنزل أهل زوجها أيضاً. موقعهما في بلدة غريفة في قضاء الشوف. كانوا يقدمون لها بقايا الطعام فقط وطعاماً منتهي الصلاحية لتأكله وكانت دائماً جائعة.
كانوا يقدمون لها بقايا الطعام فقط وطعاماً منتهي الصلاحية لتأكله وكانت دائماً جائعة.
كانت صاحبة العمل تقفل الثلاجة عندما تغادر المنزل. وبعد شهور من الجوع والعمل الشاق، قررت "إيتنيش." الهروب. وإذ لم تكن تدري أين تذهب، طلبت من شخص غريب التقت به في الطريق أن يأخذها إلى مركز الشرطة. هناك في المخفر، أخبرت الشرطة بكل ما كانت تعاني منه. وبدلاً من حمايتها، استدعت الشرطة صاحبة عملها وأخبرتها إما أن تجد ل"إيتنيش" صاحب عمل جديد أو تعيدها إلى وطنها. تمت إعادة "إيتنيش" إلى منزل صاحبة عملها حيث طُلب منها أن تحزم أغراضها وتنتظر الوكيل كي يأتي ويأخذها.
كان هذا أول اتصال لـ "إيتنيش" مع وكيلها اللبناني رامز حمادة. العديد من الوكلاء يعنّفون جسدياً ولم يكن رامز مستثنى منهم. لكمها، وشدها من شعرها، ثم داس عليها وأمرها بالاعتذار لسيدتها. امتثلت "إيتنيش" فركعت على ركبتيها واعتذرت. ثم أمرها بأن تتبعه إلى سيارته التي كان قد ركنها على مسافة قريبة. وراح يعنّفها طول الطريق إلى السيارة، اقتلع جزءاً من شعرها (الصورة مرفقة). أخذها إلى منزله. تضايق والد رامز من الهيئة التي كانت عليها "إيتنيش" وسأل رامز عن سبب اعتدائه عليها بالضرب المبرح. أجاب رامز بأنه «سيذبحها ويرميها بعيداً». في تلك الليلة لم يغمض لها جفن بالمرة. كان الجزء المسلوخ من رأسها ينزف. كانت تتألم وتخشى مما قد يفعله رامز لها بعد ذلك. في وقت مبكر من صباح اليوم التالي هربت من المنزل وخرجت مرة أخرى إلى الطريق بحثاً عن المساعدة.
بعد تعنيف رامز
التقاها رجل كبير السن، السيد حمدان الأب، في الطريق وكان مصدوماً من مظهرها. فأخذها إلى منزله. وكان لدى السيد حمدان عاملة منزل أثيوبية فأخبرتها "إيتنيش" قصتها. غريفة قرية صغيرة حيث الجميع يعرف بعضهم الآخر. عرف السيد حمدان رامز واتصل به. جاءت والدة رامز ولم يتضح ما حدث لكن "إيتنيش" لم ترجع معها. بدأ السيد حمدان الأب بتدبير عمل "إيتنيش" لتنظيف منازل الآخرين أثناء إقامتها في منزله. سارت الأمور على ما يرام حتى مرض واضطر للذهاب إلى المستشفى. رافقته عاملة المنزل ومكثت معه في المستشفى، وتركت "إيتنيش" في المنزل مع السيد حمدان الابن ،هوزي، وأولاده. لم يكن هناك نساء أخريات في المنزل. أخبر هوزي "إيتنيش" أن رامز اتصل به وقال أنه آتٍ لاصطحابها في تلك الليلة. استغل خوفها من رامز، وقال لها بأنه سيمنعه من أخذها إذا نامت معه. فرفضت. عند ذلك جرها إلى غرفة النوم، وألقى بها على السرير واغتصبها. في اليوم التالي اغتصبها مرة أخرى وهددها بالقتل إن أخبرت عاملة المنزل الأخرى بذلك. كانت "إيتنيش" عذراء وقت الاغتصاب، فمرضت.
«تورمت ساقاي وانتفخ وجهي». لم تستطع التبول إلا بألم شديد.
عندما خرج السيد حمدان الأب من المستشفى وعاد إلى المنزل، أخبرته العاملة المنزلية أن "إيتنيش" مريضة وتحتاج إلى طبيب. فأخذها إلى عيادة حيث تم تشخيص إصابتها بالتهاب ووصفوا لها دواء وأرسلوها إلى المنزل. لم تتحسن حالتها وظلّت تعاني من الألم الشديد. اتصلت العاملة الأخرى بمجموعة ناشطة إثيوبية دبرت ل "إيتنيش" سيارة أجرة لتقلّها. تم نقلها على الفور إلى مستشفى رفيق الحريري. قام الصليب الأحمر بتغطية تكاليف إقامتها في المستشفى لمدة 3 أيام. كانت بحاجة إلى رعاية طبية لاحقة. في النهاية تم إرسالها إلى إثيوبيا. وغطّى بعض النشطاء تكلفة الغرامة للأمن العام ودفعوا لها ثمن تذكرة الطيران. لم ينشر "هذا لبنان" القصة في وقت سابق من أجل حماية عاملة المنزل الأخرى. عادت الآن إلى وطنها ولا خوف الآن من نشرها.
كان أصحاب العمل والوكيل والشرطة بأجمعهم جزءاً من مأساة "إيتنيش". هذا هو نظام الكفالة. هذا هو لبنان.
* تم تغيير الاسم لحماية هويتها.
በአማርኛ ለማንበብ
ኢ የአስራ ስምንት አመት የኢትዮጵያዊ ዜጋ ስትሆን ወደ ሊባኖስ የመጣችው በ 2010 ዓ.ም ገደማ ነው፡፡የመጀመሪያ አሰሪዋ ስም አይታወቅም፡፡ ኢ ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ እያለች የአንድ ሰው ቤት ሰራተኛ እንደምትሆንና የአንድን ሰው ቤት የማፅዳት ሀላፊነት በቻ እንዳለባት ነበር የተነገራት፡፡ሊባኖስ ስትደርስ የአሰሪዎችወንና የአማትዎቻቸውንም ቤት ጭምር አንድታፀዳ ተደርጋለች፡፡የነበረችበትም ቦታ ጋህሪፍ የሚባል ሲሆን በ ሹፍ ዲሰትሪክት ውስጥ ነው የሚገኘው፡፡
የሚሰጣትም የምግብ ፍርፋሪ እና ጊዜው ያለፈ ምግብ ነበር፤ በየጊዜውም ትራብ፡ነበር፡፡
አሰሪዋ ወደ ውጭ ስትወጣም የምግብ ማቀዝቀዣውን(ፍሪጁን) ትቆልፍባትም ነበር፡፡ከብዙ ወራት ረሃብና መከራ በኃላ ኢ ለመጥፋት ወሰነች፡፡ወዴት እንደምትሄድ ባታውቅም በመንገድ ላይ ያገኘቸውን የማታውቀውን ሰው ፖሊስ ጣቢያ እንዲወስዳት ጠየቀች፡፡ጣቢያም ስትደርስ ሁሉንም የደረሰባትን ችግር ነገረችው፡፡ፖሊሱም ለሷ ጥበቃ ከማድረግ ይልቅ አሰሪዋን አስጠርቶ ወደሀገር ቤት እንድትመልሳት ወይም ሌላ ቤት እንዲያስገባት ነገራት፡፡ ኢ ወደ አሰሪዋ ቤት ተመልሳ እቃዎችዋን እንድትሰበስብ እና ወኪልዋ መጥቶ እስኪወስዳት አንድትጠብቅ ተነገራት፡፡
አንድ ሽማግሌ አቶ ሀምዳን የሚባል አዛውንት መንገድ ላይ የደረሰባትን ጉዳት አይተው በጣም ስለደንግጡ ወደ ቤታቸው ወሰዱአት፡፡ አቶ ሀምዳን ኢትዮጵያዊ የቤት ሰራተኛ ስለነበራቸው ኢ ታሪኳን ነገረቻቸው፡፡ጋህሪፍ ትንሽ መንደር ስለሆነች ሁሉም ሰው ይተዋወቃል፡፡አቶ ሀምዳንም ራሜዝን ስለሚያውቁት ደውለው ጠሩት፡፡የራሜዝ እናት መጡና ምን እንደተፈጠረ ባይታወቅም ሴትየዋ ጋር ግን አልተመለሰችም፡፡አቶ ሀምዳን እሳቸው ጋር አቆይተው አንድ ቤት ፅዳት እንድትሰራ አመቻቹላት፡፡እሳቸው ታመው ሆስፒታል እሰኪገቡ ድረስ ሁሉም ስላም ነበር፡፡የሳቸውም የቤት ሰራተኛ ኢ ን እቤት ውስጥ ከ አቶ ሀምዳን ልጅ ሆዚ እና ልጆቹ ጋር ትታት ሄደች ፡፡በቤት ውስጥ ሌላ ሴት አልነበረም፡፡ሆዚ ራሜዝ እንደደወለና ያንን ማታ እንደሚመጣ ነገራት፡፡ በ ራሜዝ መምጣት አስፈራርቶ ከ እሱ ጋር ግን ከተኛች እሱ እንደሚከላከልላት ነገራት፡፡ ኢ አልተስማማችም ከዛም ጎትቶ ወደ መኝታ ቤት አስገብቶ አልጋ ላይ ከወረወራት በኃላ አስገድዶ ደፈራት፡፡በሚቀጥለው ቀንም አስገድዶ ደፈራት ከዛም ለቤት ውስጥ ሰራተኛዋ እንዳትናገር እና እንደሚገላት ነግሮ አስፈራራት ፡፡ ኢ ድንግል ስለነበረች በሚደፍራት ጊዜ ታመመች፡፡
“ እግሬ አበጠ እና ፊቴም ተነፋፋ” ሽንቷን ስትሸና ያማት ነበር
አቶ ሀምዳን ከሆስፒታል ወጥተው ወደቤት ሲገቡ የቤት ሰራተኛዋ የ ኢን መታመምና ዶክተር እንደሚያስፈልጋት ነገረቻቸው፡፡ ወደ ከሊኒክ ወስደው ኢንፌክሽን ቢገኝባትም ሀኪሙ መድሃኒት አዞላት ወደቤት ቢልካትም ህመሟ ሊቆም አልቻለም፡፡ኢ ህመሟ ቀጠለ መሻሻልም አለነበረውም፡፡ሌላኛዋ ኢትዮጵያዊ የቤት ሰራተኛ ኢትዮጵያዊ የመብት ተሟጋች አነጋግራ ኢ ን የሚወስድ ታክሲ አመቻችታላታለች፡፡ወዲያውም ወደ ራፊክ ሃራሪ ክሊኒክ ተወሰደች፡፡ቀይ መስቀልም የሶስት ቀን ወጭዋን ሸፍኖላታል፡፡በቀጣይም ተጨማሪ ህክምና ያስፈልጋት ነበር፡፡በመጨረሻም ወደ ኢትዮጵያ ተመልሳለች፡፡የመብት ተሟጓቾች የ ደህንነት እና የአውሮፕላን ወጭዋን ከፍለውላታል፡፡ይሄ ሊባኖስ ነው ፡ይህንን ታሪክ ለሌላኛዋ የቤት ሰራተኛ ደህንነት ሲባል አልታተምም ነበር፡፡በአሁን ሰአት ወደ ሀረር ቤት ስለተመለሰች ፡ይህን ለማተም፡ችግር አይፈጥርም፡፡
አሰሪዋ፣ወኪሏ እና ፖሊሱ የ ኢ ላይ ለደረሰው በደል ተጠያቂ ናቸው፡፡ይሄ ካፋላ ነው፡፡ይሄ ሊባኖሰ ነው፡፡
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