Renad Ghanem and Shahd Alhamdan

Saudi Gazette

 

JEDDAH — The rise in the number of cases of child abuse committed by housemaids has raised a significant question about the dangers of handing out the care of infants to inexperienced domestic help.



This issue was brought to the fore recently following the execution of the Sri Lankan maid Rizana Nafeek, who was accused of smothering an infant to death in 2005. It raised alarms in the minds of many people about the risks they get into when going for inexperienced caregivers.



It was claimed in Rizana’s case that she had an argument with the mother of the child in her care. Rizana was 17 when the incident took place. She was executed last Wednesday in Dawadmi province near Riyadh.



Despite the tragic circumstances of the case it did call on the parents, especially mothers, on a rethink on the importance of taking care of their children even at the expense of work, while not placing the responsibility of baby’s care in the hands of inexperienced maids.



Many Saudi mothers interviewed by Saudi Gazette called on mothers to hire professional nannies if they want to place their children’s care in other people’s hands. They stressed that taking care of an infant or a child is a great responsibility.



A domestic help, who is originally hired to take care of the housework, is not the person to whom one should entrust their child’s care. The common refrain was that “They are not professional enough to give care for children or infants.”



They also called on the establishment of a professional daycare that could take care of children of all ages when the mother is away at work. The daycare should be run by certified professionals.



They believe that in the event such care cannot be provided then the mothers should take the responsibility upon themselves to raise their children, even if the need arises to leave their jobs.



“Our grandmothers and mothers managed work (at home) and the responsibility of raising children. It was a child’s play for them. Women can manage both today too, but if they cannot they should consciously decide on the alternatives and a professional caregiver is an intrinsic one.”



Mara Abdulrahman, a Saudi mother of two and a private company employee, said that many Saudi mothers mistakenly believe that the chores of a housemaid are synonymous with nannies.



She said, “It is unfair for the housemaid to take care of the child at the same time the housework, which in itself is a fulltime job. How could an inexperienced housemaid, who probably does not have any children, take care of an infant? Mothers should be punished if they allowed this to happen, this is inhuman.”



Sarah Ahmed, a Saudi mother of three, said that she was worried after she had her first baby. “The safety of my child was paramount to me, and I feared entrusting my baby to a housemaid. Instead I hired a professional nanny,” she said.

“I was against my husband’s wishes to hire a housemaid to take care of the house and the baby. Taking care of the baby is not a joke. I have seen how babies could get abused by housemaids, who are on the go round the clock,” she said, adding, “At the same time, it is totally unfair that Saudi families force housemaids to take on the dual role — housekeeping and care of children.”



Sarah Al-Humaid, a housewife in her late 20s, said, “Many mothers are abandoning their role as mothers when they allow housemaids to do that role. Some families depend on these housemaids to take care of children when they are away, but this is unfair because most of the housemaids are inexperienced and this could lead to issues.”



“Each situation warrants particular action, and it is the responsibility of parents to make the right choices,” the women interviewed by Saudi Gazette stressed, adding that until professional daycare centers abound, “the women could bring balance into their lives by taking the right options.”