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On March 31, 2020, ATV (Kuwait) aired a report about the presence of foreign workers in Kuwait amid the coronavirus pandemic. The reporter went to the town of Jeleeb Al-Shuyoukh and showed workers traveling freely in crowded buses, avoiding personal safety precautions, and living in tight quarters. In the studio, Kuwaiti TV host Saleh Germen said: "After all this, you are asking why people are getting infected? Do you really need to investigate?" Kuwaiti actress Hayat Al-Fahad called into the show and said that Kuwait does not have enough hospitals and that it will be completely lost if these workers aren't deported and their contractors are not fined or jailed. She said: "By Allah, they should be thrown out into the desert."
Reporter: "We are now in the town of Jeleeb Al-Shuyoukh, which is heavily inhabited by foreign workers. We will show you footage of the heavy traffic on Muhammad Ibn Qasem Street. The workers travel in unnaturally crowded buses. They live in twelve-person rooms. This is not normal. It is a catastrophe. Let's see what is going on in Jeleeb Al-Shuyoukh."
[...]
Man 1: "I have [a mask], thank God..."
Reporter: "You have to take precautions."
Man 1: "I have [a mask] in my pocket."
Reporter: "You need to put it on."
Man 1: "Okay, fine."
Reporter: "As you can see, no safety measures are being taken. Most people are making excuses like 'I forgot' or 'It's in my pocket.' It's strange. Look how many workers are getting out of the cars.
The video shows footage of a bus carrying workers.
Reporter: "Look how many workers are [in the bus], and most of them are not taking any safety precautions."
[...]
Saleh Germen: "Look at them walking in the street. Look at this large group here... Muhammad, take it back a little. Look at this large group. Look how all these people are walking down the street. After all this, you are asking why people are getting infected? Do you really need to investigate? How will we be able to control this?"
[...]
Hayat Al-Fahad: "The country is ruined because of the visa mongers. Ruined! If this situation continues, if these wandering workers are not deported, and if their contractors are not fined or jailed, Kuwait will be lost!
[...]
"Two hundred people in one small building in Jeleeb Al-Shuyoukh, and there are six or seven people in each room... Egyptian workers told me this themselves.
[...]
"If we get sick, there aren't enough hospitals. If their own countries don't want them, what are we supposed to do with them? Doesn't logic dictate that in times of distress, it is better to get rid of these people? Deport them or throw them out. By Allah, they should be thrown out into the desert. I am not against humane treatment, but we have gotten to a point where we are full."
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