Geneva Institute for Human Rights

United Nations Special Rapporteur Gulnara Shahinian is set to visit Lebanon from October 10-17 to assess the government's efforts to prevent domestic servitude. Her mission will be the first by a UN independent expert monitoring contemporary forms of slavery. Shahinian’s mandate on contemporary forms of slavery includes issues such as debt bondage and forced labor.

Abuse of domestic workers in Lebanon has been so prevalent that some countries, including Ethiopia, the Philippines, Madagascar and Nepal, have banned their nationals from traveling there for work. A survey conducted this year by NGO Caritas found that 70 percent of employers limit the freedom of movement of their employees, while nearly 98 percent retain possession of their employees’ passports.

During her eight-day visit to Beirut, Shahinian is scheduled to meet with government representatives, members of the judiciary, non-governmental organizations, community members, academics, labor recruitment agencies and others. She will present her findings at a press conference in Beirut at the conclusion of her trip on Monday, October 17, then more formally at the Human Rights Council in September 2012.