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Press Release
 
 
Re: The Correction Campaign of Foreign Workers Status in Saudi Arabia.
 
Date: November 19, 2013
Contact Info: The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Ottawa, Media Department (613-237-4100 X 1023)
Date Line: The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Ottawa
 
The Ethiopian-Canadian Community held a protest rally outside the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Ottawa Monday November 18, 2013 against the expulsion of illegal Ethiopian immigrants from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
All foreign workers who violated the Residency and Employment Regulation in Saudi Arabia were given eight months by the Government to correct their status which was advertised in all local media. The correction campaign was not directed at any one in particular and it has nothing to do with the Saudization process for the Saudi labour force. It fell within the framework of an ongoing process to correct hundreds of thousands of foreign workers status to allow them to stay in the country. The Kingdom was keen through the implementation process to treat all foreign workers fairly according to legal and regulatory frameworks. The protests that took place in Saudi Arabia in the past week affected not only the illegal Ethiopian immigrants, it also caused injuries and death to Saudi citizens and members of the Saudi security and police forces. Illegal immigrants have been advised that following deportation they are welcome to reapply to enter the Kingdom legally in accordance with Saudi Arabia's laws and regulation and this decision has been implemented in coordination with the diplomatic representatives in the Kingdom of those countries whose nationals are affected to ensure the well-being of illegal immigrants throughout the deportation process to their country of origin.