Saudi rejection of Thai maids blessing in disguise. Long ago Saudi Arabia banned foreign domestic maids from Thailand, supposedly in retaliation for some unsolved crimes in Thailand against Saudi visitors and royalty.

"And if the Saudi families suffer because they do not have someone who will work cheaply in their homes to do the tasks they feel are beneath them, then that is their problem. It is a problem of their own making. Why should we send our women to work there? They first need to learn to treat foreign maids with more respect, to treat them fairly. Our women are not slaves these people can abuse at their whim."

Editorial from the Bangkok Post. 

Thankfully, Saudi Arabia’s interior ministry has rejected a request by the country's own labour ministry to lift the ban on the recruitment of Thai maids - after other countries cut off the supply because of the high level of abuse.
Although no reason was given for the Saudi interior ministry’s rejection of the request, it is widely understood that it has something to do with the unresolved crimes committed by Thai citizens - notably the theft of jewellery from the Riyadh palace of Prince Faisal, including a priceless “blue diamond”, by Thai janitor Kriangkrai Techamong, the murders in 1989 and 1990 of four Saudi diplomats in Bangkok and the disappearance in Thailand of Saudi businessman Mohammad al-Ruwaili in 1990. These cases all contributed to the souring of relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia, and the banning of Thai workers. Saudi Arabia’s labour ministry wanted the ban lifted so poorly educated Thais could be recruited to meet the shortfall in the domestic worker labour force after several foreign governments imposed restrictions on their female citizens working in the fabulously oil-rich sheikdom. These bans were the result of widespread abuse of foreign domestic workers by their Saudi employers, other human rights violations, lack of legal protection for migrant workers and an unfair justice system tilted heavily against foreign workers. Had the Saudis lifted the recruitment ban on Thai maids, the Thai Labour Ministry and manpower companies would have celebrated and danced in jubilation because that means hard cash. It would mean money that has ceased to flow since the ban on Thai labour was imposed would start flowing again into the pockets of both the unscrupulous bureaucrats and the equally unscrupulous recruitment agents. And most of it would be sucked from the pockets of poor Isan maids who aspire to work overseas in the hope they will earn enough in a few years to help their families. Most Isan women have no idea about the high risks of working in Saudi Arabia, just the rosy picture painted by the recruitment agents. Most might not have heard about the beheading of foreign maids, including the latest victim, Sri Lankan nanny Rizana Nafeek, who was convicted of killing a child under her care in 2007 when she was just 17, after a trial widely deemed to be unfair. Or the fact that 45 other foreign maids are now on death row awaiting execution, probably by beheading. Despite Thailand’s tireless efforts to mend the fence with Riyadh and gradual improvement of relations of late, relations remain strained due to the unresolved crimes. There is slim chance that Thai maids will be able to return to Saudi Arabia to work in the foreseeable future. And that is good news for the poor women who would otherwise risk their lives and well-being there. And if the Saudi families suffer because they do not have someone who will work cheaply in their homes to do the tasks they feel are beneath them, then that is their problem. It is a problem of their own making. Why should we send our women to work there? They first need to learn to treat foreign maids with more respect, to treat them fairly. Our women are not slaves these people can abuse at their whim.