Swati Diki
צילום: ניב קלדרון
A sad day for female foreign workers
No women's day celebration for hard-working labor immigrants who are distanced from their families. 'There is an element of slavery,' says worker's hotline head
International women's day is a sad day for female labor immigrants in Israel, who are forced to leave their children behind in search for a better future.
While many women around the world receive gifts and praise from their loved ones on this day, it is just another day of longing for these women.
Swati Diki of Nepal is just one example of a woman whose difficult situation in her homeland caused her to immigrate to Israel some three-and-a-half years ago to work as a caretaker for the elderly in order to finance her three children's academic education.
After her husband died five years ago, Swati realized that she had no choice but to come to Israel to earn a living.
"I have very talented children and I don't want them to have the life I had," she said. "I would do anything to ensure they go far. Anything for their dreams."
Swati talks to her children two or three times a week, asking the regular 'mom' questions, "how was school?" "What did you eat," and so on.
As a long-distance mother, Swati knows she is missing out on real communication with her children, but her belief that this separation will contribute to their future is what keeps her going strong.
"I miss them badly, but now I am here and would like to believe I can work a few more years for their future. I am not doing this for myself, I never dreamt of an apartment or a car or anything else," she said.
Tears over the phone
Another example of these courageous women workers is 40-year-old Kanak of Sri Lanka.A mother of three, Kanak arrived in Israel two-and-a-half years ago, and has recently missed her oldest daughter's wedding.
"My daughter got married two months ago and she cried to me on the telephone because I couldn’t be there," she said sadly.
"It was very difficult for me as well, and I cry a lot because I have to raise my kids from a distance. But so many are living in poverty there, and after my husband got sick I had no other choice."
Before falling ill, Kanak's husband was also the sole provider for Kanak's sisters, a burden which now falls on her in addition to supporting her own family.
Hana Zohar, director of Kav Laoved (worker's hotline), a non-profit Israeli NGO, dedicated to the protection of worker rights, said "There is an element of slavery here. They only bring the women and separate them from their children, depriving them of being able to be close to their children."
