TROPICAL CYCLONE GONU CAUSES SEVERE HARDSHIP FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MUSCAT 000586

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, G/TIP AND DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/11/2017
TAGS: PHUM PREL AEMR ELBA SMIG MU
SUBJECT: TROPICAL CYCLONE GONU CAUSES SEVERE HARDSHIP FOR
LOW-SKILLED EXPATRIATE WORKERS

REF: A. MUSCAT 576


B. 06 MUSCAT 1635

C. MUSCAT 388

Classified By: Ambassador Gary A. Grappo, reasons 1.4 b/d.


1. (SBU) Summary: Low-skilled expatriate workers -
particularly those residing in employer-owned compounds
locally known as "labor camps" - were severely affected by
tropical cyclone Gonu and continue to face food and water
shortages. The number of storm-related fatalities among
these workers remains unconfirmed. Foreign missions are
beginning to distribute aid to their nationals, but
assistance so far has been limited and is hampered by poor
information regarding the condition and location of affected
populations. The Embassy is monitoring conditions in the
camps and updating relevant foreign missions as needed. End
summary.


2. (SBU) As Oman continues to assess the scope of damage
caused by tropical cyclone Gonu (ref A),it appears that
low-skilled expatriate laborers and domestic workers may have
been severely and disproportionately affected. Unconfirmed
estimates of the number of expatriate workers who may have
died during the storm continue to rise. Sources reported
that as of June 8, the bodies of as many as 40 Indian workers
had been found throughout the capital area. (Note: As of
0900 local time, June 11, the toll of fatalities from Gonu is
49 according to official Omani sources, with 27 missing. End
note.) One Indian woman living in a mixed-nationality,
low-income neighborhood 60 kilometers outside Muscat reported
that a wall of water surged through her community at night
when many people were sleeping, and that she heard of some
individuals being carried away by the rushing water.
Contacts expect the number of expatriate dead to rise further
as more information comes in from communities around Muscat
and further along the coast, and as water and mud are removed
from the worst affected areas.


3. (SBU) Many labor camps, in which thousands of expatriate
laborers live throughout the capital area, suffered extensive
damage. Several camps in the Wadi Adai area close to Muscat
were wiped out by rushing water, which surged through the
wadi ("valley" in Arabic) from the surrounding mountains.
Omani-based Indian news sources reported that at least 18
workers from Wadi Adai were listed as missing following the
storm, and are presumed dead. The cleaning company OIG,
which maintained a compound in Wadi Adai, moved 200 of its
workers from the demolished camp to Oman's Bowshar Stadium
for temporary lodging, where they were staying as of June 9
without cover or air conditioning. Kalhat, another cleaning
company that had a facility in Wadi Adai, relocated a similar
number of workers to its camp in the Ghala industrial area,
bringing the total number of workers housed in the already
overcrowded camp to more than 800 (ref B).


4. (SBU) Workers living in the Ghala camps, many of which
also were damaged by the storm and associated flooding,
reported food and water shortages since Gonu hit June 6.
Some of the laborers in Kalhat's Ghala facility told poloff
on June 8 that they had no water for drinking or cooking
after the storm, and blamed the company for its slow response
in addressing their needs. Approximately 150 of the camp's
residents gathered in front of the supervisor's building on
the evening of June 7 angrily demanding food and water.
Contacts added that workers throughout the Ghala camps faced
similar conditions, and that there were reports on June 7 of
some violence among workers in at least one facility. While
poloff confirmed that Kalhat sent water trucks to its camp on
the evening of June 8 and again on June 9, workers contend
that the water is not nearly enough to meet demand.


5. (C) Diplomats and labor attaches in embassies of
labor-exporting countries admit that they still do not know
how many of their nationals have been severely impacted by
Gonu, particularly among the population of workers who may be
here illegally. Labor attaches in the Sri Lankan Embassy say
that they have little information on the condition or
whereabouts of women living and working illegally in Oman as
domestic employees under what is locally called the "free
visa system," but suspect that they are facing considerable
hardship. Poloff traveled with the attaches to a devastated
neighborhood outside of Muscat to deliver emergency
assistance to a number of Sri Lankan nationals who said they
lost everything in the storm. One woman stated that a group
of illegal workers similarly affected by the storm were
scared to leave their rented villa and accept aid - even from
their own embassy - for fear of being deported.

MUSCAT 00000586 002 OF 002




6. (SBU) Foreign missions claim that they are aware of the
overall situation of their nationals, but most are only
beginning to mobilize relief efforts. The Indian community
is the most organized so far, using a network of private
businessmen to manage and fund emergency aid distribution.
The Indian School in a suburb of Muscat is acting as a
primary distribution point, and volunteers at the site report
that they served over 2,000 people of all nationalities with
food and water between June 7-9. Contacts assert, however,
that demand for assistance is greater than supply. The
Indian director of the Tijan Group of Companies, who is
coordinating cyclone relief in Ghala, stated that he is
simply engaging in "triage," focusing on the thousands of
workers in smaller companies who likely are at greater risk
of extended food and water shortages.


7. (SBU) Comment: Post will continue attempting to monitor
the condition of expatriate workers and inform relevant
foreign missions of situations in which their nationals may
be at considerable risk. Post also is prepared to engage
companies like Kalhat, with which the Embassy has a contract
to clean the Chancery (ref C),to ensure that it is taking
steps to meet the basic needs of its workers, given city-wide
disruptions to water supply. Mission employees have donated
food and water to workers in the camps, and will continue
these volunteer efforts. End comment.
GRAPPO