ABOUT US

WHY DO WE EXIST?

Freedom Mandate was birthed out of a 'call to action’. While our founders were living in the arab world, they noticed that migrant domestic workers were a normal and visible part of society, whether it be working for the refuse company, scraping chewing gum off the floor of the mall, washing windows, or ‘maids’, wearing a stereotypical maid outfit, following after their employer’s family in the supermarket. The thing that struck them most was that the majority of migrant workers looked incredibly sad and visibly oppressed by the ‘employers’ who were with them. Something didn’t seem right.

We began to look into the working conditions of domestic workers in the hosting countries and were shocked at what we found. For example, at least two migrant workers per week are dying in Lebanon. The majority of domestic workers do not get a day off, they are not allowed access to their passports or mobile phones and in many cases, they are made to work highly excessive hours without breaks and without adequate food. It is completely normal for them to be made to sleep on the floor of the living room or even the balcony.

We began to have opportunities to meet individuals and hear their horrific stories of abuse first-hand. These cases included rape, physical and psychological abuse, suicide and in some cases, murder. The most shocking thing we discovered is that Arab countries do not have basic rights for migrant domestic workers and in the vast majority of cases, there is no investigation by Law Enforcement into mistreatment, meaning that the perpetrators know that they can get away with their behaviour without repercussions.

Freedom Mandate is a collective response from volunteers to bring light into darkness. To bring hope to what appears to be a hopeless situation. We are a faith-based charity who are motivated by the example and teachings of Jesus.