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Suspects in the Alabama Mystery
Feb 3, 2008, from Huntsville, North Alabama:
On 30 January, the quiet city of Huntsville was abuzz with news many residents found troubling. 100-150 alien workers from Nepal had "disappeared" with "thousands of dollars" worth of "furniture" from apartments they had rented. The workers had been hired under temporary working visas by Cinram, a Canadian company, at the Huntsville plant. The news of their flight was broken by WAAY-TV, a local station, saying, "The group of workers from Nepal simply disappeared without any warning, creating a potential security risk". The story also appeared on its website, and East Of Huntsville, a local blog, followed suit with a post titled "What's Going On At Cinram?". The post repeats details reported by News Channel 19's Barry Hiett: "Taking not only their own belongings from their Huntsville apartments, it appears many of them have also made off with the furnishings provided with their apartments. By some estimates as much as $200,000 worth of furniture."
Largely based on the report by Associated Press, Nepal's daily Kantipur published an article titled "100 Nepali Workers Missing From Alabama" on the same day. Another website, NepaliPost, also followed with a similar report, and it didn't take long before the national American media turned its attention towards the story. By 2 February, CNN had picked it up, when Lou Dobbs equated the Nepali flag with "visa abuse," and the ultra-conservative, infamous Rush Limbaugh made it a talking point on his radio show.
"Our families are really worried because they have no idea what has happened here," one of the Nepali workers who is still working at Cinram told us. "The media so far hasn't done us justice. We see the landlord's claims being broadcast, but we haven't been represented fairly."
The facts can be clearly explained in at least two matters: first, all Nepalis involved had been given an official document by the employment agency, Ambassador Personnel, stating they could leave the job any time they wanted to; the H-2B visas on which the Nepali workers came to the United States are still valid for several more months more (all of them were validated for a minimum of seven months), and as stated, they were under no contract to stay with the job at Cinram. Second, there had never been thousands of dollars worth of furniture to steal in the first place.
The apartments are operated by a company called Total Management Services, and are furnished with old couches and beds. The furniture consists of no more than plastic tables and chairs, the kind that are more commonly used in the garden. Most rooms also come with old television sets, and the landlords had promised to give the Nepali tenants a DVD player per apartment if they paid their rents on the first of every month. "We moved furnitures around from room to the other, but we haven't stolen anything," said one of the workers requesting anonymity.
One thing that is clear amongst the 40 or so Nepalis workers left, from the original lot of about 240, is that each is now stricken with paranoia and embarrassment. "It was very humiliating for us to go to work when the media reported that we were thieves," said a worker. "And now, even though we had plans to leave Cinram after some time, for whatever reason, we are worried that we will be caught."
Another mistake in the reports that have so far come out of Huntsville is the impression that the 100 or so Nepali workers walked out en masse. In reality, it appears that Nepali workers had been trickling out of Huntsville for weeks now. In fact, some never even made it here to begin with, immediately seeking out other options after arriving in the United States via JFK airport in New York. And this issue would have never been publicized if not for the landlords' accusation of theft. "I think the landlords got upset with us because they had planned to take our rent money for seven months, but that dream got shattered when they realized we were leaving," another young worker originally from Myagdi, Nepal, said. "But the thing is, we don't want to fight with these people, because we can't. And we don't want to start any trouble."
The Nepali workers also claim that even after signing the lease they weren't briefed on, none of them to this day have been given a copy. Only after Nepalis demanded to know what the process was to leave the apartment, they declared a month's notice was a must. However, they also told the Nepalis that they would not be given a release form or any document stating that they have left following due process. "Now I have seen others—Jamaicans, Hispanics—leaving with no notice of any kind only after a week, or even few days, of having moved in. How come that wasn't a problem for the landlord?" asks one worker, also requesting anonymity, fearing reprisal. "We are just so worried and scared of what will happen to us, and how people will view Nepali workers from now on, because of the reports that accuse us of being thieves," said another.
The fairest report yet published came today in the Sunday Edition of The Huntsville Times. The article was written by Challen Stephens, who with Combrian Lawson had written an article about Cinram's hiring practices and the arrival of Nepali workers on 16 November last year for the same paper. Today's article gives ample space to the Nepali side of the story, explaining the right of the workers to leave any time they wish and how many of those that have left have already found jobs in other American cities. "We are really glad that finally someone has explained the situation after talking to us," a relieved worker said after carefully reading the article. "But I feel that a lot of damage has already been done."
WAAY-TV is now hoping to meet with some of the remaining three dozen or so Nepalis, to hear and broadcast their side of their story, four days after the original report.
(This brief will be followed with a full report soon).
Comments
Want to publish the write up in The Kathmandu Post.
Hi, I am News Editor, The Kathmandu Post. I don’t know who to address and where to address this mail;thus,I chose this comment box. We would like to publish this story in our newspaper. If the fuller version is available, great. If not, even this one will do. Pls write back.
ameet dhakal
CNN’s Lou Dobb is the most racist pig…He is against Foreigners, ligal or Illigals. We need to raise our voice to sack racist pig like him from CNN. His program is always against Immigrants. He wears KKK mask when he is off the air.
Thom, Thank you for your efforts to put across the story from the perspective of the workers.
Ameet Ji, I don’t know what the process at the Kathmandu Post is, but one of the issues that came up and is a very disconcerting fact for many Nepali immigrants (particulary employee and DV lottery winners) is the fact that manpower agencies in Nepal are apparently able to function with complete immunity.
In the Cinram case, there are allegations that workers paid enormous amounts of money to a manpower agency to help get them these visas.
As a Nepali practicing immigration law in the U.S, I hear horror stories from D.V lottery winners of the insane amounts of money they pay these agencies for basic things like a “letter of support” to help them get the visa they need to enter the U.S - can your newspaper write an article on the unscrupulous methods of various manpower agencies in Nepal? If memory serves me, the tragic death of 11 Nepalese in Iraq was also as a consequnce of some manpower agency sending them to work for Haliburton when they was an express ban against such employment contracts…if the government is unwilling/unable to hold them accountable, at least we can hope that larger society will!!
Nepalese Leaders Say Cinram Controversy Unfair to Community, Missing Workers
Posted: Feb 4, 2008 05:45 PM CST
Amitjee,
Thank you for your interst in giving the coverage in Kantipur media.
Here is the latest follow up piece came out last night on a local TV channel. This piece will tell you what Nepali community in Huntsville, Al think about. We were very frustrated and stunned from the distorted and one-sided story.
Buddhi
http://www.waaytv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7821448
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAAY) - Federal authorities are trying to track down more than 100 Cinram workers from Nepal who went missing after their arrival in Huntsville. Now, the company who brought the workers to the United States claim to have located some of them.
Last week federal authorities confirmed that the employees from Nepal who were in the country on a worker’s visa had disappeared without a trace. No one knows where the workers went, but landlords who were housing the Nepalese said some of them took off with television sets, furniture, and other valuables.
Officials at Blair Staffing Agency said they have found passports with return stamps from Nepal.
The company president told WAAY-31 News that he doesn’t know for sure how many workers may have returned.
The Department of Homeland Security uses a tracking system for all foreign workers, and officials there haven’t confirmed any of the Nepalese actually left the country.
There is a small Nepalese community that has called Huntsville home, some for many years. Leaders of this group told WAAY-31 News Monday that they’re not happy with what the national attention has done to their reputation.
“It’s pretty embarassing to us, even though no one else is accusing me personally,” said Nepalese native Dr. Tilak Shrestha. “But the whole country gets this bad rap. That’s what we’d like to correct
Some also said the missing workers got a raw deal from Cinram, and that the stealing accusations aren’t true.
Earlier today those accusations were challenged by Nepalese leaders in town.
“You can’t accuse these people,” said Santosh Pokhrel. “Everyone says Nepalese people stole and its not true. [Others are] just ripping them off. [They are] actually stealing money from them because you are taking advantage of these people.”
Pokhrel has been a U.S. citizen for 12 years, and runs a gas station in Madison. The Nepal native came into contact with some of the Cinram workers last week, and said both the landlords and Cinram have tried to exploit his countrymen.
“We want to see them treated fairly,” Pokhrel said. “[The landlords] need to take their word back. [The workers were] accused of stealing furniture, and everyone knows its not true. You walk in that apartment and you see how much that costs.”
Reporter: Nick Banaszak
Web Editor: Dana Franks
(Copyright 2007 by WAAY-TV. All Rights Reserved.)
This is the real story from Nepal:
Nearly 240 workers got visa to work in Cinram Inc. a DVD company in Alabama under H-2B Work Program. When USA agents and Nepal’ agent agreed to work to hire Nepalese workers from Nepal, they recruited only those persons who pays $25,000.00 and their (agents)intension was just provide visa and collect money from workers. Even Nepal agent has earned Rs. 360000000.00 from workers. Who were in road in yesterdays, they are propiter of Land, Appartments, Vehicles etc in certain days. Neither Nepal governmen has taken any action against them nor any others media has written about them. Agents in Nepal have bought Bangala, Pajero, Car from that human smuggling property. Even they have not paid government tax.
Nepal is very good and easy place for human smuglling for international brokers. Actually, those people who were working in Cinram, they have taught to leave there any time because they could not earn such amount which they had paid to Nepal agents in 7 months workin in CInram Inc, Alabama. It is not matter of losing and earning for certain persons but it will be more difficult to get visa for real Nepalese workes in coming days. Thanks.
Thank you for publishing about Nepalese workeers missing in Alabama, USA. Nirvana Alliance is a consultancy sent those workers charging high cost from Nepal. http://www.nirvanaalliance.com is only registerd company as consultant in Nepal but no right to send workers from Work Permit System in Nepal. Members of Nirvana Allicance have earned huge amoung from this human smuggling in Nepal. Those workers had paid $20,000.00 to $25,000.00 per applicant in Nepal to Nepali broker(Nirvana Alliance: http://www.nirvanaalliance.com)and brokers had told them to leave jobs from Cinram at any time.
Thank you.
This people name Dev Giri and Prem are big fraud in NepAL. as per my information giri is big cheater and have been to jail many times as per the police report. He don’t have the capicity to do anythings and he keeps on blaming on others. He keeps me writing to me and he is not a good consultant.
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http://www.sherpakyidug.org/forums/Messages.asp?idThread=2758
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Please, visit this link for detail of Alabama Story of Nepalese workers. http://www.sherpakyidug.org/forums/Messages.asp?idThread=2758
“Pokhrel has been a U.S. citizen for 12 years, and runs a gas station in Madison. The Nepal native came into contact with some of the Cinram workers last week, and said both the landlords and Cinram have tried to exploit his countrymen.”
If he is a US citizen wouldn’t his countrymen be Americans?
Just goes to prove that all too many naturalized citizens these days don’t transfer their loyalties when they change their citizenship. It wasn’t always this way.
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We’ve posted an update to this story tonight at http://www.eastofhuntsville.com/2008/02/much-ado-about-cinram.html and will continue to follow it as events dictate. Please feel free to visit, read, and comment. We’re open to all points of view!
- Thom