Abstract:
The research sought to find out what is really going on in the modern Kafala and to create
solutions for reform based on what is right for Saudi instead of being led by outside voices.
The research focuses on migrant domestic workers as one of the most marginalized and
vulnerable groups in Saudi, with Kafala practices that amount to modern slavery. The value of
this lies in, firstly, promoting the interests of Saudi and the GCC; secondly, upholding human
rights and associated principles; thirdly, contributing to an international understanding of Islam
and the GCC; and fourthly, providing a culturally specific solution to reforming the Kafala. The
selected research methodology consists of mainly qualitative interviews of government
officials and other professionals. The research has identified cross-cutting issues that must be
addressed by reforms of the Kafala, and that are borne out of the intersecting issues of slavery,
Islam, and gender. These cross-cutting issues include: culture (in particular the fact that the
status of women and foreigners means that their exploitation may be culturally accepted);
migration (which includes the global context of migration and Saudi’s own aims in relation to
the system); and access to justice (such as the problem of ensuring that legal reforms are
implemented and people are able to exercise their rights).