29 Jun The Kafala System: From Domestic Labor to Diplomatic Dilemmas

Sasha Raed Karzon

School of Politics, Economics, and Global Affairs, IE University, Madrid, Spain.

Bachelor’s in International Relations

E-mail: srk.ieu2024@student.ie.edu.

Abstract

This paper examines how the Kafala system shapes diplomatic tensions between Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and Kuwait, and major labor-sending nations such as Nepal, Pakistan, andthe Philippines. Through various case studies including the Philippines-Kuwait domestic worker abuse disputes, and the Nepal reaction to the migrant deaths in Qatar, India’s push backs against Saudi’s Nitaqat policy, and the Pakistan-UAE tensions, this research analyzes how systemic labor exploitation under Kafala ignites bilateral friction. The various conflicts studied highlight both the human rights abuses enabled by employer control over migrants and their mobility, and the weakness of existing labor agreements and legal frameworks. The paper further explores how labor-sending states struggle to protect their citizens abroad while relying on remittances from those very citizens, and how GCC countries preserve cheap labor and global pressure for reformations. Ultimately, the Kafala system emerges as not just a tool of exploitation but a recurring source of diplomatic strain and a barrier to meaningful labor reform.

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Keywords: GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), Kafala System, Labor Migration, Diplomatic Disputes, Migrant Worker Exploitation, Labor Reform, International Relations, Nitaqat, Bilateral Labor Agreement.