UAE Helping Hands: Bangladeshi wants to die at home but cannot afford return of passport

Mohammed Miaa is trapped in a legal limbo as his visa has expired and he cannot pay his hospital bill of Dh38,000

Mohammed Miaa from Bangladesh needs Dh38,000 to pay off his hospital bill for heart surgery he had a few months ago. Reem Mohammed / The National

All Mohammed Miaa wants is to die peacefully with his wife and children by his side in Bangladesh.
Instead, the 60-year-old heart surgery survivor is trapped in Dubai until he pays off a Dh38,000 bill he owes the hospital that treated him.
The first sign of trouble for the office assistant and father-of-two was when he lost his hearing in May, then collapsed at work.
"I suddenly couldn't hear anything and my head felt like it was going round and round," he said, after which he blacked out and went into a coma.
"I don't know what happened. I woke up to find myself in the hospital.
"The doctor told me that I was out for three days and a vein in my heart had burst."
He partially recovered from the operation but remains very ill and can no longer work.
Mr Miaa is now trapped in legal limbo.
His visa has expired, meaning he is no longer a legal resident in the country, but the hospital has retained his passport until he pays.
He has no home and relies on handouts for food.
"I love this country but I can't work anymore," he said.
"My time is finished and I feel like I will die soon. I want to die in Bangladesh with my wife and children.
"How can I pay them back. I have no money and I am unemployed. 
"All I want is to get my passport so I can die at home.
"I have nothing. My friends buy me food and allow me to stay at their place because I told them I would leave soon. They are worried that I will die in the streets in this heat and with no food."
Hisham Al Zahrani, manager of Zakat and social services at Dar Al Ber Society, is promoting his case in the hope members of the public or a generous benefactor will help to pay his medical bill.
"The hospital is asking for Dh38,000 to release his passport. Unless he pays this amount, he will remain trapped in the UAE – homeless, unemployed and very ill," Mr Al Zahrani said.