Imagine leaving your home for a quick errand or for work, a family emergency or just a fun outing and coming back to find yourself locked out of your home with no way to enter. This is what hundreds of individuals and families faced since the airport in Kuwait was closed.
The Times spoke to a few of them to discuss the challenges they have to deal with since flights into the country were suspended and people were forced to stay where they were – many in foreign countries staying in hotels and running low on finances.
Karmen Meneses
Karmen, a Kuwaiti resident for the last 24 years, travelled to India in March 2020 to research schools for her daughter who was passing out of grade 10. It was meant to be a quick visit to look at the school campuses.
Travelling via Dubai on her way back, on March 6 she was told she could not fly back to Kuwait since she had to do the mandatory quarantine. Eligible for a visa on arrival in Dubai, she thought it would be best to spend the quarantine period in Dubai and then she could go back to Kuwait. Unfortunately, Kuwait closed its airport the very next day.
Karmen hung on hoping the airport would open shortly. After three weeks of living in a hotel, concerned about safety and with no clear indication on when the airport would open again, she felt it best to fly back to Goa where she could at least be at home. A investment bank employee, she has now spent three months with no clue on when she can come back.
Her daughter and husband are in Kuwait and Karmen is desperately waiting to get back and be with them. “The challenge is to stay positive which is difficult at times as I have never stayed away from home this long by myself ever. My daughter was turning 16 this April and we had big plans to celebrate her sweet 16.
It was very painful not to even be with my girl on her birthday, let alone celebrate. The challenge is not only for me being stuck here away from Kuwait but also for my entire family. My husband is doing a great job in my absence by multitasking between work and home and I know it is not easy.”
Karmen admits that she has broken down many times during this tough period and felt like she can’t go on for one more day. “But the thought of ‘hopefully soon’ returning to my family makes me stronger and positive. Working remotely helps as it keeps me busy and more than anything, having my siblings around close-by has made a big difference.”, she says.
Keen to be back she emphasizes, “I am looking forward to Kuwait opening up the skies so I can be with my family as soon as possible. So, when it happens, I will pick up my overnight bag which I travelled with and come home to my little world.”
Jumana Abbas
Jumana, a marketing veteran grew up in Kuwait and has been living here for the last 45 years. She travelled to India on February 22nd to visit her parents and was scheduled to be back on March 7th.
At the Mumbai airport, while waiting to board, she was told that the flight to Kuwait was cancelled. And thus, began her long saga. She returned back to Pune and has been there since, waiting to hear when she could come back.
Working in advertising and retail for the last 25 years, she also lost her current job as a Marketing Manager at Al Yasra Fashions during this time. “If I was in Kuwait I would have tried and kept my job since I would be a more reliable asset to my company.” says Jumana.
Jumana’s husband and two children, aged 17 and 11 are in Kuwait. Her husband and children are Pakistanis so for them to join her in India is also impossible.
Being away from her family is a huge challenge and she highlights “The most important and biggest challenge is not being able to be with my children especially my daughter who is suffering from scoliosis and needs a female in the house since our house help left. Losing my job and having my husband’s business at standstill has made it financially very difficult. With all these uncertainties we had to make some tough decisions and had to reduce the wages of our house help after which she chose to leave us.”
Jumana understands that it’s beyond her control and means to do anything to get back sooner but can help feeling extremely lost and helpless. “The uncertainty of the situation is extremely depressing and frustrating. I would like to request the authorities to consider the return of expats who have issues such as mine. I am sure there are many like me who are stranded and would desperately like to reunite with their immediate family.”
Darwin D’cruz
Darwin left his two kids in the care of his 72-year-old father in law when he and his wife needed to go to India to attend a funeral in the family. It was just a couple of days and they were flying back in via Dubai but when flights to Kuwait were suspended, they were forced to stay put in Dubai.
Working for a private company as a sales manager, Darwin has now been stuck in Dubai for over 3 months. “We are mentally stressed and financially drained out. What can be more worse than being away from kids for more than 3 months. This is the agony. I know Kuwait is trying to protect the people but for once on humanitarian grounds I would like them to think about people like us who are stuck outside and kids alone in Kuwait.” he says.
Darwin’s son also celebrated his birthday during this time. It was the first time since he was born that the family was away from each other for such a special occasion. Their neighbors were kind enough to make it special for the boy but still it was heartbreaking to be away from him.
“I am trying all the ways and means. I call the Consulate of Kuwait every week in a ray of hope and am also trying to call all the airlines possible too every week.” explained Darwin.
Javid Dalvi
With two young daughters all alone in Kuwait, Javid and his wife Samina, who were in India to attend the happy occasion of a family wedding, have been held up there since 28th February.
His daughters Ibtisaam and Suaad were to join them on the 4th of March but hearing about the impending lockdowns they made a family decision not to travel. Javid and Samina also preponed their return to the 7th of March. Unfortunately, at the airport they were informed of the flight cancellation.
Director of operations with Luai Al Abdul Razzak and Partners Co., Javid whose family has been in Kuwait since the 50s, explained that staying away for so long has its own challenges. Especially when a short holiday becomes a long stay. Luckily for them they are in their own home in Pune but adapting to the lockdown, restricted movement, and long queues for basic necessities, all took getting used to.
Javid highlights “For a person who has always been on the move, to stay within four walls gets very depressing at times. Yes, it’s hard and difficult.”
On the work front, he is sure he may have missed out a lot of opportunities for business development during this difficult time. “But, better late than never. Will do my best once I am back to Kuwait.” he says.
From the perspective of their daughters, one of the major challenges they faced early on was, when deliveries were not available, and things were not operating online. They had to go and shop physically and as both didn’t drive, were reliant on friends and shopping trips had to be planned according to their convenience. Also, the girls had to manage their own study or work schedules while managing the home front.
Ibtisaam adds “Having lived under the umbrella of our Mother always, it was a VERY tough first month as we had to learn how to do everything in the house. As days went by, we gradually had roles for each other that helped us divide the tasks at home and it kept us preoccupied most of the time. And of course, not a day would go by without us video calling our mother to find things in the kitchen and asking for recipes. But we are faced with a missed opportunity of family time. We hear all our friends talking about the good times with their families and it’s deeply saddening to have this taken away by a day. One thing for sure we will never forget is that some of our family friends always sent us food and were constantly checking upon us.”
On a positive note, Javid says “Life is always a learning. And this is the second lesson for my family and myself as the first was in 1990. We fought through it then, and InshaAllah we will overcome this situation also.”
Surraya and Salim Cyclewala
Salim Cyclewala a resident of Kuwait for the last 40 years and his wife Surraya are currently stuck in the UK. They came for a short ten days to be with their daughter who is pursuing her medical studies there. They have now completed over three and a half months with limited belongings away from their family in Kuwait.
Initially staying in a hotel, they decided to move into a rented apartment to ease the financial burden. They also continue to pay the rent of their apartment in Kuwait during this time. Being away for their printing business which is also locked down for this long period also has its own challenges. Their press workers continue to receive their salaries.
Surraya says “We would like to be united with our family as soon as possible and for work to get back to normal.”
Babli Anand
Living alone in a hotel in Mumbai since 27th February, Babli Anand says “The biggest challenge is staying in a hotel because visitors are not allowed in my relatives’ apartment complexes. Lack of proper food. Lack of exercise (confined to one room). Unavailability of medicines. So many other issues.”
Babli travelled to attend to urgent legal matters and was to return on the 8th of March.
She currently spends her time keeping abreast with current news, trying to request the MOFA for an urgent return, and keeping track of flight schedules in both countries.
Lonely and in low spirits Babli highlights “I need to be back with my husband who is also living alone. It is very difficult to stay away from home especially during such trying times. I heard flights reopen in August. I am hoping Mumbai/Kuwait Airports will open soon. Keeping my fingers crossed.”
Sudhir Menghani
“It’s very difficult to manage with 2 small kids in such a difficult situation especially when my husband is not in the country. Especially arranging day today stuff and managing regular stuff in the Corona situation when the market and other commodities are not functioning well.” Explained Kanika Menghani whose husband Sudhir is stuck in India since 7th March. He went to attend his uncle’s funeral and could not come back due to the lockdown.
A mechanical engineer with KEO International Consultants, Sudhir has been a resident of Kuwait for the last 18 years.
Sudhir says “I tried to contact Kuwait Embassy in India, posted emails to MOFA, and other official websites but have no reply. I am also booked on Jazeera Airways for 2nd July 2020 at double the price. But am still not sure whether I will be able to fly or not.”
Since April 2020, it is also getting exceptionally difficult for them to manage finances. “It’s really a dire situation and I really don’t know how I can get back to my wife and kids.” said Sudhir. Locked down in Kuwait or locked out of Kuwait, the unprecedented challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic remain enormous for all.
There have been some recent reports that the airports are likely to open and allow residents of Kuwait to return by August 2020.
We are still awaiting confirmation from the Government entities. With the aviation regulatory bodies issuing guidelines for safe travel and local testing, allowing people to come back may not be as risky. For the many locked out and away from their homes and families we can only hope for a quick return.
– By Nita Bhatkar Chogle
Special to The Times, Kuwait
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