Ranjan Dahal from Nepal
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Brutally exploited by dubious intermediaries. They live in miserable conditions, work 10 hours a day. They receive only about 200 euros a month. They are the new slaves of Portugal: workers from India, Nepal, Thailand, he says Deutsche Welle.
Indians prune vines, Thais harvest raspberries, Nepalese harvest broccoli, and Pakistanis harvest sweet potatoes. Human rights groups estimate that there are more than 3,000 labor migrants from Asia in the area around the town of Almeirim alone, and more than 30,000 in the whole of Portugal. Most of them are still waiting for documents and reside semi-legally in the country. They live in terrible conditions, often work more than 10 hours a day and are brutally exploited by dubious intermediaries.
The need for cheap labor is growing
“Asians started coming here in 2018,” recalls Katya Sequeira of the NGO Proabraçar. Sekeira helps migrants with the legalization of documents. In the past, it was mainly southern Portugal that attracted Asian workers, she said. But today, Asians are everywhere. The more agriculture flourished in the European country, the greater the need for cheap labor. Thus, the number of illegal migrants gradually increased, Sekeira explains.
However, the Portuguese authorities did not act until last year – until the pandemic forced them to do something. To deal with the situation, they decided: anyone who received a salary and paid social security contributions for three months must be registered.
However, this did not solve the problem of illegal workers. It turned out that it takes months, and in some cases even a year, to check the documents. Meanwhile, workers continue to live in containers or crammed into dilapidated houses. And they are often dependent on criminal intermediaries. “On the one hand, the pandemic turned out to be a blessing because legalization became possible,” Sequeira explained. “On the other hand, human dramas continue to unfold.”
200 euros per month for hard work in the field
Arjun Joshi is from the Indian state of Kerala. He graduated in automotive engineering, and in 2019 came to Portugal with a tourist visa. Already at the airport in Lisbon, he fell into the hands of an intermediary, to whom he paid 1350 euros to find him a job and documents. After a few months, he gave up picking fruit – he earned a little over 200 euros a month, and the procedure with the documents did not work. “I got sick, but it turned out that I was not registered with the health authorities. I had to pay 800 euros out of my pocket for the treatment.”
Joshi got a job as a driver in a Chinese store. “But then COVID came and I stayed home for seven months – confused and unemployed,” said the young man. A Portuguese man helped him – he showed him how to register and get the necessary documents. “It all cost only about 100 euros,” said Joshi, who has already opened a small car repair shop.
However, most migrants are unlucky: they officially work for the Portuguese minimum wage of 600 euros, but have to pay their employers for shelter, transport and food. That leaves them with only about 10 euros a day or even less, Joshi explains. Many of his compatriots pay 10,000 euros to traffickers to live in Portugal. But because of the huge debts, their dream quickly turns into a nightmare.
“The Portuguese do not want to do this job”
In recent years, Portuguese agriculture has flourished. And as the country exports more fruits and vegetables, more and more cheap labor is needed. “The Portuguese don’t want to do this job,” said landowner Vitor Jorge. That’s why he has to hire workers from Asia.
Currently, seven Nepalese are picking broccoli from him. “Everything is legal for me,” says Jorge. “Workers receive a minimum wage, everyone is insured.” He provides them with free shelter in a building in his yard. And yet: not everything is completely “legal”. The apartment where the workers sleep is not certified as such. “What should I do, asks Vitor Jorge. The labor office cannot find me Portuguese, and the housing procedures are too bureaucratic and cannot be carried out on an old farm.”
For Ranjan Dahal, that doesn’t matter. The Nepalese has been working for Vitor Jorge for three days. “I’ve been in Portugal for a year and I’m glad I found this job.” He used to pick raspberries in the southern part of the country. “I had to share a small house there with 15 other people, there were constant problems, including with the payment.” Instead of on the floor, the 29-year-old now sleeps on one of the bunk beds in Vitor Jorge’s yard.
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