If you work in a Dictatorship are you indirectly supporting it?

Corsendonk

I couldn't help noticing the amount of foreign expats working within Libya, Egypt and now Syria that had to flee due to uprisings against oppressive dictatorships. Now the vast majority were poorly paid migrant workers from Africa and the Middle East on the breadline but a substantial amount were highly paid, skilled and educated Western Europeans working in the oil industy, health care, teaching etc I can't help thinking that if I was to work in a Dictatorship I would be supporting the oppressive regime status quo. Any opinions?

diddlybit

It's an interesting point. If a country is lacking in certain skills, that only can be filled by ex-pats, it could be argued that there presence there could be justified in that they may be helping raise the standard of living for ordinary people. I suppose there could be some indirect correlation between this, however, and the inadequate education systems for the people of Libya, that would allow them to fill these jobs rather than out-sourcing them.

What has been publicised a lot recently has been the number of celebrities that were directly employed by the Gaddafi family fro entertainment for exorbitant sums of money. Many of them gave the money to charities following the uprising, but come on, they must have known what the regime was like anyhow. Some didn't, presumably because they've already spent it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/07/charlie-brooker-50-cent-gaddafi

Corsendonk

diddlybit wrote: »

It's an interesting point. If a country is lacking in certain skills, that only can be filled by ex-pats, it could be argued that there presence there could be justified in that they may be helping raise the standard of living for ordinary people. I suppose there could be some indirect correlation between this, however, and the inadequate education systems for the people of Libya, that would allow them to fill these jobs rather than out-sourcing them.

What has been publicised a lot recently has been the number of celebrities that were directly employed by the Gaddafi family fro entertainment for exorbitant sums of money. Many of them gave the money to charities following the uprising, but come on, they must have known what the regime was like anyhow. Some didn't, presumably because they've already spent it.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/07/charlie-brooker-50-cent-gaddafi

I often hear the argument that the expat presense in a dictatorship such as Saudi/Bahrain is helping to open up the country to Western Ideas but is that really true? I have friends who have family who have worked in Saudi and the Gulf states for a number of years. They tried moving back to Ireland but they missed the expat lifestyle and house servant they had in Saudi. There the expats mix in their own social circuit with fillipino servants and little contact with the general population, almost like a modern Raj Era or Out of Africa Kenya. So really are expats only benefitting themselves and supporting the dictatorship regime status quo?

diddlybit

Corsendonk wrote: »

I often hear the argument that the expat presense in a dictatorship such as Saudi/Bahrain is helping to open up the country to Western Ideas but is that really true?

Was just refering to work based skills in my post i.e. it being better to have an ex-pat fill a post, rather than have it empty. My father was in Saudi for a couple of years as they had a shortage of Health Inspectors.

I think you are absolutlely right though in regards to ideas and beliefs, there is probably little influence on the predominate ideology by Western workers. A lot of their presence in these countries also requires them to abide by certain moral and legal codes as well. The standard of living as an ex-pat in an especially oil-rich country would be unattainable in Ireland with the skills that they have. It actually makes me feel rather ill that some could not re-settle here as they missed the privilages of these countries, especially in ragrds to having staff. (My mother has recounted a couple of horror stories in relation to the treatment of Filipino staff to me.)