ABU DHABI // A 14-year-old boy from Bangladesh will be deported for entering the country illegally in search of what he called "a better life". For the past year, the boy, MA, has been living with an Arab family in Umm al Qaiwain and working for them as a servant. A federal court yesterday ruled he should be deported.
Prosecutors said he came here when he was 13 using a fake Bangladeshi passport and soon found work in a kitchen washing dishes. It was not clear where he entered the country; he will not serve any time in prison. Standing among shackled men awaiting trial, MA was handcuffed and dressed in a striped shirt with the word "England" stitched across it. According to his statement in court yesterday, he has no family in the UAE.
"My parents sent me here, for a better life," he told the judge in simple but broken Arabic. It is not clear how his presence became known to authorities, but he was arrested in December and is being held in the juvenile detention centre in Al Mafraq. Yesterday was the first time MA had appeared in court. By law, he would not be able to get a work visa. "A minor under the age of 21 is not permitted to work in the country on a domestic worker's visa," said a labour attorney, Ali Alabadi, who is not connected to the case.
It is not known how MA acquired his labour and residency permits. Courts usually order juvenile offenders who have not committed a serious crime to be deported without serving any prison time. MA will be deported at government expense next week. @Email:myoussef@thenational.ae
