Indonesia Demands Action Over Abused Maids In Malaysia

The Indonesian government on Wednesday upped the pressure on Malaysia to take swift action against abusive employers after the death of an Indonesian maid working in Kuala Lumpur.

The beaten body of 24-year-old Kunasir was found last week. Police are currently investigating a Malaysian couple for her murder.

"We need the Malaysian government to take swift action on this case. This cannot go on as there are just too many cases where our people have been mistreated," said A.M. Fachir, the Indonesian deputy chief of mission here.

In another recent case, an Indonesian maid climbed out of the window of a high-rise apartment in the Malaysian capital to escape an abusive employer. Fachir pointed to another case of an Indonesian maid who escaped violent employers four years ago.

The abusers were charged by police but have not yet been tried in court, while the maid remains in limbo in Kuala Lumpur, Fachir told a press conference at the Indonesian embassy.

Fachir also said the law seemed to be weighted against domestic workers, citing a recent case where a maid caught stealing 800 dollars was jailed for seven years.
"But serious cases involving Malaysia employers have yet to be tried and many times forgotten," he said.

Malaysia relies heavily on foreign workers for menial jobs, and the Indonesian embassy says about 300,000 Indonesian maids are employed here.

While local authorities have denied abuses are on the rise, the Indonesian embassy said more than 1,000 abused or unpaid workers seek refuge in its compound every year.

In the press conference on Tuesday, Zulkifli Dahlan, president of Malaysia's Foreign Workers' Agencies Association, said Kunasir had not gone through the proper training and was thus more susceptible to exploitative employers. "Malaysia is trying very hard to clamp down on this and the government has given us the authority to stamp out these problems," he said. (Channel Newsasia)

***** I suppose that the attention of the authorities and the judiciary is now focused on the Mongolian model murder trial. It wouldn't look very good if the C4 users are freed on some pretext or the other while the cruel employer of foreign maids is severely punished. By right the government should make it clear that maid abusing is not on and those found guilty will face the harshest punishment. Make an example of a few of the really cruel bastards and hopefully the others will think twice before they resort to serious abuse of these vulnerable foreigners.
Image - Source