Sheikh Rashid bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, undersecretary of the Nationality, Passport and Residence Department, said the number of Asian workers sneaking into the country was on the rise and the need of the hour was to impose tough restrictions at the airports and King Fahd Causeway that connects Bahrain to Saudi Arabia.
The steps would involve revision of the present transit system at airports and the causeway and will be reviewed every three months by the authorities. Bahraini authorities will be working in close coordination with their Saudi counterparts to keep vigil on the causeway. Bahrain Coast Guard, during the past five years, foiled 14 human trafficking attempts from the northern side of the country’s territorial waters.
Asian workers sneak into the country to work mainly in the booming construction sector without documents and often get arrested and deported.
Bahrain enacted a comprehensive law prohibiting all forms of human trafficking and imposed stiff penalties ranging from three to 15 years imprisonment.
