There are almost always laws on the books that would protect these people, but they've often never heard of those laws, and the systems that are supposed to enforce those laws are corrupt or broken or both.
Quase sempre há leis publicadas que protegeriam estas pessoas, mas normalmente eles nunca ouviram falar dessas leis, e os sistemas que supostamente deviam impor essas leis, são corruptos, ineficazes ou as duas coisas.