Abdul Majid and Sabir Hussain hoping to procure one meal for the day. Photos by Kymberlee Fernandes |
But Eid is all about being happy, so why were these people unhappy? For starters, many of them were still trying to score their first meal for the day. It was already noon and they hadn’t found any work at all. Their day starts at 6am. And food isn’t their only problem. They don’t have a house to live in. One of the daily wage labourers, Abdul Majid from Pakistan said, “Eid? We don’t have a house; we sleep on tatters of cloth.”
To which his accomplice and neighbour from Pakistan, Sabir Hussain added, “We can’t afford to do anything at all. We sit here through the day hoping someone will come around to give us some work.”
Alone during Eid in Dubai. Sajid, a daily wage worker.Abdul Majid was quick to tell me that Eid always has to be celebrated with family, but he was all alone in the UAE and found no reason to do so. He continued saying, “I have not spoken with my family back in Pakistan today. They have frequent power cuts and cannot charge their phones. Inshallah, I will speak with them tonight.”
“We have no money to call. I have five children and a wife, and it will be great if I manage to speak with them tonight”, said Sabir Hussain.
We had already been in a conversation long enough, but only once or twice did the topic of the day, Eid, come up. They had bigger issues than to decide how to spend their day leisurely. While the rest of Dubai’s residents and tourists were being enticed by retailers to go shopping and splurge, these men carried on like Eid was no big deal at all.
On the other hand, some workers could afford a meal and take the day off to spend it with their friends. Another labourer around, Sajid said, “Eid to me is a phone call to my family. There’s nothing more than that. I am working today.
It’s the same for every man here. No one can meet the expense of celebrating here.”
They work every day of the year. When I told Abdul Majid that I was working and hadn’t eaten too, at once he sprung “Madam, should I buy you something to eat?” I was left speechless.
This post first appeared on khaleejtimes.com
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