Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Diplomats who exploit domestic staff won't get immunity from prosecution, rules UK Supreme Court

Diplomats are normally protected from both criminal charges and civil cases in the countries where they are posted.

Diplomats who exploit domestic staff won't get immunity from prosecution, rules UK Supreme Court

THE UK Supreme Court has ruled that no diplomatic immunity should be given in modern slavery cases, according to a report.

Diplomats are normally protected from both criminal charges and civil cases in the countries where they are posted.


The top court held that a Saudi diplomat Khalid Basfar, accused of exploiting a Filipina domestic worker in London, did not have immunity in relation to the allegation, the BBC reported.

According to the report, the decision paves the way for the woman to seek compensation.

Basfar is a member of the diplomatic staff at Saudi Arabia's embassy in London.

The case was brought by Josephine Wong, 30, who alleges she was forced to work for Khalid Basfar and his family in conditions of modern slavery.

Her lawyers said she was subjected to verbal abuse and was given only left-over food to eat when her employers were at home. They added that she was confined to the house at all times except to take out the rubbish. 

She alleged that she was made to work from 7 am until around 11.30 pm every day of the week, with no days off or rest breaks. Wong told the court that she was forced to wear a doorbell so her employers could summon her at any moment.

The court heard that she was brought to the UK from Saudi Arabia in 2016, and not paid anything for seven months. Then she was paid about £1,800 in one lump sum - a fraction of her contractual entitlement - and after that not paid again.

Wong managed to escape in 2018 and brought a claim against Basfar in an employment tribunal. But he said the claim should be struck out on the basis of his diplomatic protection.

Under article 31 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, diplomats enjoy immunity from criminal prosecution. But any commercial activity outside their professional work can be the subject of civil claims.

The Supreme Court now ruled that his alleged exploitation of her amounted to commercial activity.

"The extent of control over Wong's person and dominion over her labour exercised by Basfar on the assumed facts of this case was so extensive and despotic as to place her in a position of domestic servitude," the BBC report quoting the court order said.

"Further, on the assumed facts Basfar gained a substantial financial benefit by deliberately and systematically exploiting Wong's labour for almost two years, initially for a fraction of her contractual entitlement to wages and latterly for no pay at all. This conduct is accurately described as a commercial activity practised for personal profit."

Wong's lawyer, Nusrat Uddin, told the BBC: "It's justice at last for our client. And for all of the potential victims at risk of being exploited by diplomats. It allows recourse to take legal action and that's extremely empowering."

James Fookes, Anti-Trafficking Monitoring Group Co-ordinator at the charity Anti-Slavery International, has said that the ruling is the first of its kind in the world and will shine more light on this serious issue and will hopefully lead the way to greater protection.

Mr Basfar's solicitors declined to comment on the ruling. There was also no immediate response from the Saudi embassy in London.

More For You

Rochdale grooming case

They were all remanded in custody, except Bashir, who absconded before the trial began. (Photo: Greater Manchester Police)

Seven men convicted of raping 13-year-old girls in Rochdale grooming case

SEVEN men were convicted on Friday in the UK’s latest grooming trial, after a jury heard that two girl victims were forced to have sex “with multiple men on the same day, in filthy flats and on rancid mattresses”.

Jurors at the court in Manchester, northwest England, deliberated for three weeks before finding the seven men, all of whom are of South Asian descent, guilty of rape.

Keep ReadingShow less
karan-thakar

Karun Thakar is a leading textile collector with a lifelong focus on Asian and African textiles

Karun Collection

Karun Thakar Fund to support textile research with scholarships and grants

THE KARUN THAKAR FUND, established by textile collector Karun Thakar in collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), supports the study of Asian and African textiles and dress through scholarships and project grants.

The fund offers one-time Scholarship Awards of up to £10,000 for university students worldwide focusing on any aspect of Asian or African textiles and dress. Undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate students from any accredited university are eligible, provided their research or practice is clearly linked to these areas. The next round of Scholarship Award applications opens on 1 May 2025 and closes at 23:59 on July 15, 2025.

Keep ReadingShow less
Asian leaders recognised in King's birthday honours list

Professor Jagtar Singh (Photo: Facebook)

Asian leaders recognised in King's birthday honours list

ASIAN health workers, academics, charity workers and campaigners are among those who have been recognised in the King’s birthday honours list announced tonight (13).

More than a thousand recipients have been awarded for their exceptional achievements, with a particular focus on those who have given their time to public service, according to the Cabinet Office.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India

A view shows the wreckage of the tail section of an Air India aircraft, bound for London's Gatwick Airport, which crashed during take-off from airport in Ahmedabad. (Photo: Reuters)

Air India crash: Probe focuses on engine and flaps; safety checks ordered for 787 fleet

THE INVESTIGATION into the Air India crash that killed more than 240 people is focusing on the aircraft's engine, flaps, and landing gear.

The Indian aviation regulator has ordered safety checks on the airline’s entire Boeing 787 fleet, reported Reuters.

Keep ReadingShow less