(contents)
Epilogue 2
190 Middle East
meets Far East
(2/4)
Three Arabs, Khatib, Zahra and Shatila, working at a
Japanese oil company that produced the oil in the offshore of Kuwait and Saudi
Arabia, were forced to be fired. Jordanian Khatib invited Palestinian Zahra to
return together to Amman, Jordan. With the savings during the migration and
retirement allowance, Khatib planned to be the landlord in Amman and Zahra planned
to set up an automobile repair shop. Another Palestinian Shatila decided to imigrate
to the United States where his younger brother had been working. Two
Palestinians had to leave the Gulf. This time they moved from east to west.
One night, several Japanese colleagues held a
farewell party for three Arabs. Guests were served food and beverage. Japanese
colleague drunk alcohol drink. In Saudi Arabia alcohol was prohibited, but
Japanese staff was assigned a company house where the authority overlooked
Japanese drinking habit. All attendees indulged in memories. Shatila spent 30
years in Japanese company. Zahra had been working for 23 years, and Khatib 21
years respectively. It was at the noon of their life. Usually migrant workers did
not work so long period for one company. In case of Kuwaiti or Saudi company, they
had to be fired by the owner's caprice or they changed spontaneously their job unbearable
of the tyrannical owner. But in the Japanese company they could work in peace.
The work environment was comfortable. Concession agreement between government
and the company was until 2000. They would like to continue to work until that
time, if possible. But the Palestinians, who had been at the mercy of history,
accepted their destinies calmly.
(To be continued
----)
(From an ordinary citizen in the
cloud)
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