An estimated 300 million domestic workers from the world's most impoverished countries are scattered across the globe from Kensington, West London to the wealthy Hamra District of Beirut, serving the rich and supporting a population back home that is at least twice as large. The remittances from this silent army provides an estimated $300 billion a year, nearly three times the world's foreign-aid budgets combined, bringing Morocco more money than tourism does, Sri Lanka more money than tea and the Phillipines just under a tenth of its GDP.
But behind hard-earned dollars sent back are often tales of abject exploitation and sorrow, sexual abuse, violence and murder.