Nepali men working in the Gulf are increasingly susceptible to rape at the hands of their male colleagues. One of my roommates had to travel to Jabel Ali in Dubai five months ago where he was almost raped by a Pathan. The man began by complementing my friend on his good looks and then forced him to accompany him to his hotel room. When my friend ran away the Pathan chased him down in a taxi. There was a small market nearby so my friend dispersed into the crowd and saved himself.

We also heard about a Nepali migrant worker in UAE who killed his Pakistani roommate after a fight at a hotel. Later, the media clarified that the man was simply trying to defend himself while his roommate tried to rape him. But the lower court in Abu Dhabi sentenced the Nepali to death.

There are many incidents of sexual violence against men that go unreported in the Gulf region. “We have heard that after men are raped, they are just left to die. But such cases hardly come out in the media,” admits a local from Pokhara who is currently working in UAE.

Social mobiliser, Surya Chand, who also works in UAE says that many Nepali men are tricked by locals on the pretext of helping them and they go missing as soon as they land at the airports.