On Friday, March 15th, the South Asian Studies Institute hosted an online lecture by Dr. Fazeeha Azmi, Professor of Human Geography at the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka. Dr. Azmi is a Research Associate at the South Asian Studies Institute and was warmly welcomed by Dr. Satwinder Bains and Dr. Garry Fehr to share her research study on Sri Lankan Tea Plantation Women’s Odyssey through Middle East Migration: Listening to Untold Stories of returnee labour migrants.
Dr. Azmi conducted a lecture on the contemporary tea plantation sector, which is closely connected to the colonial history of Sri Lanka, but also important in terms of recent foreign exchange earnings and resulting security in millions of people’s lives. In the lecture, Dr. Azmi brought awareness to the persisting economic, social, political, and mental health crisis among migrant female laborers in the Sri Lankan tea plantation sector who migrate to work in Middle Eastern countries.
The tea plantation sector in Sri Lanka has a long history of exploitation and socio-economic inequity against female
labourers. These women face poor conditions of estate education, healthcare, housing and are at higher risk of alcoholism due to the mental health issues in a high-stress work environment. Dr Azmi explained that opportunities within the sector are declining, causing more women labourers to migrate to the Middle East for work. However, in the Middle East, female labourers report that they face kafala (passport confiscation), abusive and exploitative labour, underpayment or in some cases no payment among other issues.
Dr. Azmi has abiding research interests in studying women’s issues and labour migration. Combining her knowledge and interest in the topic, she conducted a year of research on three tea plantation districts across Sri Lanka between 2021-2022. In the lecture, she explained her research approach, findings on the ongoing exploitation and poor conditions faced by the labourers in the tea plantation sector, while advocating for the untold stories of female labourers.
The South Asian Studies Institute is honoured to have hosted an online lecture in partnership with Dr. Azmi on her critical research study on Sri Lankan Tea Plantation Women’s Odyssey through Middle East Migration: Listening to Untold Stories of returnee labour migrants. The full lecture is now available on the South Asian Studies Institute YouTube channel here.