Domestic help abuse

For years, women working as domestic maids in Malaysia have complained that they are treated badly and abused by their employers. Often from poorer countries, they have filed report after report to their governments about the working conditions.

Two years ago, the Indonesian government imposed a ban on Indonesians working in Malaysia as maids. Jakarta then worked out a list of guidelines with the Malaysian government to ensure working conditions improved.

Nonetheless, these don’t seem to be effective. Now the Cambodian government wants to negotiate stricter regulations with Kuala Lumpur, after many nationals returned.

Two years without pay

Yim Vichika came back to Cambodia after working as a maid in Malaysia for two years. She has unbelievable stories to tell about what she experienced during her time working for an elderly couple in the capital. What is shocking is that she is not alone.

"I was promised three meals a day,” the 20-year-old says. “I was supposed to get rice, but all they gave me was three slices of toast each morning and nothing else. I started out cleaning the house and then I also had to clean an office. I usually worked until one o'clock in the morning. At four o'clock my work day would start. If I didn't get out of bed quickly enough, they poured cold water over me.”

In two years, Yim Vichika didn’t have one single day off. She wasn’t paid until her two-year contract was almost through. For two years’ work, she got 2,200 US dollars. But at least she was able to return home unscathed.

Unlike Thai Chany.

"I was kicked daily, to the extent that I can no longer walk for very long,” says the 19-year-old. “They twisted my ears, and did other things to me. I cannot work right now.”

Thai Chany worked for a whole year without pay. When her brother found out, he called the family and asked to speak to her but to no avail.

"The had already been threatening to kill me if I broke off my contract. When my brother called, the man, who understood Khmer, sat next to me holding a knife. I wasn't able to tell my brother about anything that was going on.”

Finally, the agency that she had gone through complained to the family she was working for. Afterwards, she was allowed to go back home to live with her mother, who hardly ever lets her out of the house today.

Preparing women preparing to go abroad

Licadho, a human rights organization based in Phnom Penh, offers preparation courses to women who plan to go abroad to work as maids. Co-worker Sem Chausok says such courses are necessary because the agencies that arrange work for domestic workers rarely provide assistance or protection. Thus, the women don't know who to turn to when they are in need of help.

"Agencies usually send recruiters to get girls to sign up to be maids,” he says. “They don't tell the girls anything about the working conditions. It is easy for people to become a victim of trafficking.”

The governments of Malaysia and Cambodia are currently involved in talks on setting minimum standards for the treatment of domestic workers, including regulated pay and working hours, and a ban on all forms of maltreatment. It is expected to be similar to the agreement made with Jakarta, whose implementation is a long time coming.

Author: Udo Schmidt / sb
Editor: Anne Thomas