Shoura member Fadil calls for deportation of all illegal expatriates

Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — A Shoura Council member has called for the deportation of all illegal expatriates and said their number has greatly multiplied to reach between three-five million. Sadaqa Fadil revealed that he had presented a draft proposal to the council on the issue and said the illegal expatriates are posing a serious threat to the Kingdom’s security and stability. “I have noticed that a large number of the African and Asian expatriates come to the Kingdom to stay permanently especially in big cities in the Western region,” he said. Fadil said these illegal expats have no intention of going back to their respective homes and that they have reached the third generation and have multiplied into millions. “They are violating the Kingdom’s residency and work regulations as well as the international law which prevents illegal staying in any country,” he said. The member said the overstayers have accomplished their wish of staying in the Kingdom and it is time to send them back home. “They are out of the security radar. They even deny their real names and their nationalities so as not to be deported,” he said. Fadil said there are some districts in the Western region that give you the impression that you are in Africa or Asia. “The illegal expats move freely in these areas, they multiply and commit violations without being apprehended or questioned,” he said. The member said his proposal was aimed at containing this phenomenon so as to preserve Kingdom’s security and stability. He hoped that the council would endorse his proposal, which included the setting up of a national committee to specify their numbers so as to deport them. “There are 10 districts in Makkah where are all kinds of crimes take place because their residents have come from poor backgrounds in their original countries,” he said. Fadil said after their exact number has been specified, they will be investigated to consider their conditions so as to correct their status. “There may be a very little number of them not exceeding one percent who may be found to deserve the Saudi nationality. Some others may be given regular residency permits (iqamas) but the large majority of them should be sent out of the Kingdom,” he said.