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BY FREEMAN MAKOPA

Thousands of Ethiopians surrendered to Saudi authorities as Addis Ababa announced the death of 3 citizens during a clampdown on illegal migrant workers in the oil rich kingdom which began last week .

The clashes occurred because the illegal workers were frustrated they did not have a way to surrender to the police. Ambassador Mohammad Hassan Kabiera said the workers procured to the streets to air their grievances, concerning clashes with some youths in the neighbourhood.

The Ethiopian worker’s surrender came amid clashes that had persisted earlier this week between police and Ethiopian migrants on Saturday that led to the deaths of three people in the poor Manfuhah neighbourhood of Riyadh.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Dina Mufti told reporters that three of Ethiopian citizens had died during clashes in the Gulf Kingdom .

“The act of killing innocent civilians is uncalled for, we condemn that and I have also been told of the death of three Ethiopian citizens ” he said.

The predicaments followed the Kingdom’s move to round up, thousands of illegal workers starting from November 4 , following the expiry of amnesty for them to formalize their status , among these people were the foreigners who had overstayed their visas who had sought jobs and migrants working under one sponsor trying to get jobs elsewhere.

Various people lined up under the blazing sun in the poor Manfuhah neighborhood of the capital waiting to be ferried by the buses to deportation centres, asked about their situation the citizens said they were forced to sell their belongings.

“We were forced to sell our furniture for very low prizes and in our haste had to give away much of it .”

Riyadh governor Prince Khaled bin Bandar Abdulazaz said the clampdown was designed for illegal migrants and not any specific group.

“We will continue these campaigns until we ensure all residents in our country are staying legally” he said.

Mufti said the Government had called for an investigation had called for an investigation into the deaths , adding that a delegation has been sent to Saudi Arabia to help the repatriation process .

The enticement of work in low paid jobs as domestic workers has made the country a magnetic for migrants from Asia as well as from poorer Arab states.

However despite its enormous oil wealth Saudi Arabia has a jobless rate of more than 12.5% among its native population , a figure the government had sought to cut.

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