Millions of migrants in the Middle East caught in the middle of the war in Iran

As the war in Iran continues, millions of migrant workers in the Gulf are caught up in the ongoing conflict, adding to their already vulnerable existence.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Now we want to talk about an aspect of this Middle East war that many people might not be thinking about - the millions of migrant workers who helped fuel economies across the Middle East and the Persian Gulf and who are now among the casualties of the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran. A Filipino caretaker was killed on the first day of the war. Thirty-two-year-old Mary Ann Velasquez de Vera was hit by shrapnel from an Iranian missile strike on Tel Aviv.

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

Daffodils Guevarra is another migrant worker caught up in the war.

DAFFODILS GUEVARRA: I'll be very honest - we're not used to any war at all over here.

MARTÍNEZ: By over here, she means Dubai, the business hub of the United Arab Emirates. That safe haven status is now being put to the test. Guevarra has been a general practitioner in Dubai for nearly 20 years. She remembers hearing drones flying overhead.

GUEVARRA: And then, guess what? Ninety percent gets intercepted. So technically, we hear them, then boom. You hear some booms, and then quiet.

MARTÍNEZ: More than two weeks later, Guevarra says many things have returned to normal, but the uncertainty of the war weighs on her.

GUEVARRA: What will happen one week from now, months from now, years from now? That's on the top of our heads. So we're just hoping. I mean, there's a general hope over here that things de-escalate and that hopefully this conflict ends soon.

MARTIN: The International Labor Organization estimates there are more than 24 million migrant workers across the Gulf region. The vast majority of them work low-wage jobs in sectors like construction, health care and domestic work. Most migrant workers are from India, Bangladesh, Kenya, Indonesia and Guevarra's home country, the Philippines.

JOANNA CONCEPCION: There are an estimate of about 2.4 million Filipino migrant workers in the entire region of the Middle East, and majority work in the United Arab Emirates.

MARTÍNEZ: Joanna Concepcion leads Migrante International, a Manila-based group that supports overseas Filipino workers, or OFWs. She says the conflict in the Gulf this time feels different than those before it.

CONCEPCION: Because of the intensity and in terms of countries that previously were not affected by regional conflict before countries like the United Arab Emirates.

MARTÍNEZ: The Philippine government has managed to bring some of their nationals home, but they've told OFWs broadly to shelter in place, hoping the conflict will end soon.

MARTIN: Concepcion says this request only adds to many workers' already vulnerable situations.

CONCEPCION: Many foreign governments exploit Filipino labor and treat them essentially as disposable. Anytime that the contract ends, or the workers speak up for their rights, they're immediately terminated and just treated as criminals and slaves.

MARTIN: Now, that abuse is hard to fully quantify, but academic surveys and NGOs like Human Rights Watch have cited thousands of reports each year.

MARTÍNEZ: Still, Concepcion says there are simply not enough well-paying jobs at home.

CONCEPCION: The current minimum wage in the National Capital Region is less than $15 a day. A family of five cannot survive with less than $15 a day.

MARTIN: Daffodils Guevarra says she makes over 80% more as a doctor in Dubai than she would in the Philippines. And even amid the war, she still has no regrets about coming to Dubai. She suspects she's not alone.

GUEVARRA: I think it's provided a lot of opportunities for all the OFWs to live a better life.

MARTIN: So for now, Guevarra and the millions of others like her are staying in place as the war rages around them.

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