Several expats born in the Kingdom who have been deported to their original home countries are finding it difficult to adjust there, missing their families and relatives who are still living in the Kingdom. Many of them can’t even speak their native language preventing them from getting jobs in non-Arab countries.

Most of this category comprises expats who have been deported for violation of work and residency laws or because they were involved in fights warranting punishment by deportation.

Many consider Saudi Arabia their home because they speak fluent Arabic in the local dialect and have adopted the customs of this country. However, when they go back to their home countries, they live as foreigners.

A number of deported expats born in the Kingdom told Arab News, “Our home countries do not accept us as one of them because we speak Arabic with a Saudi accent and can’t speak in the language of the land of our origin. The language barrier is creating difficulties for us in finding jobs so we have to depend on financial aid from our parents living in the Kingdom.”

“I live here alone without my parents and friends who are still in the Kingdom. I was deported by Saudi authorities for working with employers other than that stated on my iqama. I don’t know the local languages. Therefore, despite being highly qualified, I am finding it hard to find a job. My parents are sending me money on a monthly basis to manage affairs here,” Saleh Adem, a 25-year-old Ethiopian who was born and educated in the Kingdom told Arab News.

Hasan Omran, 30 and originally from Bangladesh had a similar story to tell. He spent two years in his home country but failed to adjust there. “I was deported to Bangladesh in 2012 but the people there treat me as a Saudi. The deportation allowed me to see my country for the first time in my life. My father is still in the Kingdom working as a civil engineer. I studied in India and came back to the land of my birth which is Saudi Arabia. However, as I couldn’t get a job there, I began working for other employers and was deported.”

A senior passport official denied media reports that Saudi-born expatriates would be exempt from the new labor regulations. Director of Passports in Makkah Col. Abdullah Al-Thebaiti said no expatriate, including those born in the Kingdom, would be exempt from the strict procedures followed by the authorities during the crackdown on illegal labor.

There are more than 8.4 million expatriates in Saudi Arabia. Of these, an estimated 2 million or more have been born in the country and spent their entire lives here.

There are also an estimated 30,000 third-generation Saudi-born Indians in the Kingdom. If a similar percentage exists in other expatriate communities, then there are about 820,000 people living in the Kingdom.

However, the figures are probably higher. According to official statistics in 2009, over 14.4 percent of births in the Kingdom were registered to foreign parents. More specifically, the majority of the one million Palestinians living in the Kingdom were born here. However, there are around 800 thousands expats who have been expelled during the last 15 months, according to Saudi media.

Source: ArabNews