Kenyan Domestic Worker in Saudi Arabia Escapes Abusive Employer, Ignites Diaspora Outrage Over Gulf Exploitation

Country: Saudi Arabia (with Kenyan diaspora discussions from UK and US)
Date Published: November 27, 2025

A harrowing account of a Kenyan domestic worker's escape from alleged abuse in Saudi Arabia has gone viral on X, drawing thousands of reactions from the Kenyan diaspora and igniting fierce debates about the perils faced by migrant workers in the Gulf. Mary Wanjiku, a 32-year-old mother of two from Kiambu County, shared a thread of graphic photos and videos detailing months of physical abuse, withheld wages, and passport confiscation by her employer in Riyadh. Posted on November 27, her story quickly amassed over 15,000 reposts and 50,000 likes, with users tagging Kenyan embassy accounts and international labor organizations. Verified Kenyan journalist @LarryMadowo amplified the thread, calling it "a wake-up call for Kenyans chasing Gulf dreams."

Wanjiku, who had been working in Saudi Arabia for 18 months under the kafala sponsorship system, described being beaten with a belt, denied food for days, and locked in a room without access to her phone. In a video clip viewed millions of times, she is seen with visible bruises, tearfully recounting her flight to the Kenyan embassy after sneaking out with help from a sympathetic neighbor. "I came here for a better life for my kids, but this is hell. No Kenyan should endure this," she wrote in her opening tweet. The post sparked a flood of similar testimonies from other Kenyans in the UAE, Qatar, and Lebanon, with hashtags like #GulfSlavery and #SaveMaryKE trending in Kenya and among diaspora communities in the US and UK.

While many X users praised Wanjiku's bravery and called for government intervention, the story also highlighted positive diaspora efforts. UK-based Kenyan influencer @DiasporaQueenKE, with 200K followers, launched a GoFundMe that raised over KSh 2 million in 24 hours to support Wanjiku's return and legal fees. "Our sisters are suffering while sending remittances home. Time to boycott these jobs," she posted, garnering support from regular users sharing success stories of those who returned and started businesses. However, controversy erupted as some influencers faced backlash for allegedly exaggerating claims, with critics like @TruthTeller254 accusing "hustlers" of fabricating stories for donations. Kenyan government officials, including the Labour Ministry's X account, responded promising investigations, but diaspora voices dismissed it as "too little, too late."

The incident underscores ongoing tensions in Kenyan migrant labor discussions on X, where positive tales of Gulf workers buying homes in Kenya clash with horror stories like Wanjiku's. Recent threads reference over 10 similar escapes reported in 2025 alone, fueling calls for bilateral agreements. As Wanjiku awaits repatriation, her story continues to dominate Kenyan X timelines, blending heartbreak with community solidarity and demands for reform.