Woman who died in Oman illegally recruited, say police

The commissioner of police Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force Mr Moses Binoga

What you need to know:

  • Police say fighting illegal recruiting companies is hard because the labour export law does not prescribe punitive measures.

Kampala. The commissioner of police Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force Mr Moses Binoga, has said Teopista Namubiru, who died in Oman, in the Middle East was recruited by an illegal agency.
The 29-year-old whose passport page has been trending on social media was on January 14 found dead in her employer’s swimming pool. Namubiru had been hired to work as a housemaid.

Mr Binoga revealed that it’s the deceased’s employer who communicated to the family about Namubiru’s death.
“I have talked to the family and they confirmed she knew how to swim; and that they had never received any report of mistreatment,” he said.
He also revealed that the ministry of Internal Affair, police and the family will meet to see how the body can be brought back home.

Mr Binoga said despite government cautioning Ugandans against from travelling to Oman to work as domestic workers after receiving reports of mistreatment that included physical and sexual abuse, assault, lack of proper medical care, among others many continue to seek employment there.
He noted that desperate Ugandans ignore the 81 authorised agencies and use illegal companies to seek employment.

No measures

According to Mr Binoga, fighting illegal recruiting companies is hard because the labour export law does not prescribe punitive measures. He advised Ugandans to consult the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development or the Ministry of Internal Affairs before daring the external labour market.