‘She just vanished’: Ethiopian domestic workers abused in Lebanon

For decades Ethiopians have flocked to Lebanon in search of work. But many find a cycle of abuse that’s hard to escape.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – Aster Goshu squints as she speaks quietly into the phone’s camera. “They lock me in the home when they leave,” she says in Arabic, speaking in a frantic tone. “I spend my days crying,” she adds, pointing to the dark circles under her swollen eyes. “I’ve cried so much that I have trouble seeing things from a distance.” It was late 2019, and the then-24-year-old Ethiopian woman had waited for her employers to leave their home for work in Beirut, Lebanon, before hitting record.