Maid policies should be changed
-
Singapore accused of maid neglect
Female migrant workers in Singapore face what amounts to forced labour due to a lack of legal protection, US-based rights campaigners say.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said domestic workers were overworked and frequently denied food, pay and social contact, as well as suffering physical abuse.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4502046.stm -
Here's another report from the International Herald Tribune:
"...Stories of exploitation and abuse of migrant workers, especially women, in the richer countries of East Asia are so common as to barely elicit comment. But the Singapore report set off a media debate about the wisdom of allowing maids any days off. It emerged that it was common for maids not to be allowed out at all, for fear that they might wind up pregnant. Currently, an employer must pay a government fee, in addition to food, housing and medical care - and repatriate any maid who becomes pregnant. Many employers regard these impositions as reason to deprive maids of the normal rights of adults.
"We can't control the maids. So it's best that when we employ the maid, we tell the agent we don't want to give days off," one employer wrote to a local paper. A 2003 newspaper poll showed that 50 percent of maids got no days off; a lucky 10 percent got one day a week....
..Singapore's success in keeping the lid on its growing underclass is clear enough. But behind the abundant prosperity, clean streets and superb infrastructure is another Singapore of labor exploitation. In the case of domestic workers, it is nothing less than shocking."
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/14/opinion/edbowring.php
[/b] -
Originally posted by oxford mushroom:Singapore: Domestic Workers Suffer Grave Abuses
Migrant Women Face Debt Burden and Exploitation
(Singapore, December 7, 2005) – Women migrant domestic workers in Singapore suffer grave abuses including physical and sexual violence, food deprivation, and confinement in the workplace, said Human Rights Watch in a new report released today.
At least 147 migrant domestic workers have died from workplace accidents or suicide since 1999, most by jumping or falling from residential buildings. Migrant domestic workers earn half the wages of Singaporean workers in similar occupations, such as cleaners or gardeners. Unpaid wages is a growing complaint.
“Many domestic workers labor without pay for months to settle debts to employment agencies, work long hours seven days a week, or are confined to their workplace,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “Singapore’s refusal to extend ordinary labor protections to domestic workers is leaving them open to abuse.”
The 124-page report, “Maid to Order: Ending Abuses against Migrant Domestic Workers in Singapore,” is based on more than one hundred in-depth interviews with domestic workers, government officials, and employment agents. It details a range of abuses endured by domestic workers in Singapore and the response of the Singaporean government. ...
Read more of the Human Rights Watch report:
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/07/singap12125.htmOriginally posted by oxford mushroom:Singapore accused of maid neglect
Female migrant workers in Singapore face what amounts to forced labour due to a lack of legal protection, US-based rights campaigners say.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said domestic workers were overworked and frequently denied food, pay and social contact, as well as suffering physical abuse.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4502046.stm
Does repeating three reports over some consequetive days supposed to justify your comments that the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS are Maid Abusers ?Originally posted by oxford mushroom:Here's another report from the International Herald Tribune:
"...Stories of exploitation and abuse of migrant workers, especially women, in the richer countries of East Asia are so common as to barely elicit comment. But the Singapore report set off a media debate about the wisdom of allowing maids any days off. It emerged that it was common for maids not to be allowed out at all, for fear that they might wind up pregnant. Currently, an employer must pay a government fee, in addition to food, housing and medical care - and repatriate any maid who becomes pregnant. Many employers regard these impositions as reason to deprive maids of the normal rights of adults.
"We can't control the maids. So it's best that when we employ the maid, we tell the agent we don't want to give days off," one employer wrote to a local paper. A 2003 newspaper poll showed that 50 percent of maids got no days off; a lucky 10 percent got one day a week....
..Singapore's success in keeping the lid on its growing underclass is clear enough. But behind the abundant prosperity, clean streets and superb infrastructure is another Singapore of labor exploitation. In the case of domestic workers, it is nothing less than shocking."
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/14/opinion/edbowring.php
From these reports read, it seems that these were based on some haphazard gathering of a few minor cases that actually occurred, and spiced up with the imagination of some "White Men with a Mission" - sitting at some desks in airconditioned comfort making news to justify their own continued existence and employment,
In all the forty five odd years of Singapore's independence, there have been rare cases of Singaporeans employers brought to court for ill treatment of foreign workers, but has anyone ever hit the headline of not paying foreign maids for months on end ?
If this not pure speculation and creation of news to sensationalise a non-existent issue ?
Your feeble attempt now seems even more insulting towards Singaporeans in general, now that you dare even to reveal yourself as an Expatriate Resident living in Singapore for more then 15 years.
Does living in Singapore for 15 years make you such an authority of Singaporean Life, when the issues that you have written on clearly show the shallowness of your thinking - revealing the fact that you have barely understood or even scratched the veneer of Singaporeans ?
Unless of course in your usual practice of inflating your own worth - from PhD qualification, to your association with minor Political Leadership of Communist China, and now are we supposed to be more respectful to your revelation as a Resident Expatriate ?
Are you expecting the local Singaporeans to show deference to your newly declared status as a highly qualified foreigner, a highly qualified expatriate living in Singapore ?
If at all, as an Expatriate Resident, you should have taken note of LKY's maxim towards foreigners, and stay clear of Local Politics.
If you do not like what is going on in Singapore with the manner that your domestic helper friends are being treated, you could take as many out of Singapore as your own country can be willing to absorb.
You will save yourself and the employers who employ your "Maid Friend" a hefty phone bill with your "midnight tryst". -
The blinkered Atobe is so blinded that he will not see reason, but hopefully not all Singaporeans:
"I AM one of the thousands of Filipino maids in Singapore. Let me share my opinion about the proposed US$400 monthly salary of Filipino maids.
This recommendation made by the Philippine government is a good move for us because we work more than 12 hours a day with less than eight hours of continuous rest.
According to a study conducted by Harvard University, Singapore's maids boost the economy. Having maids at home who can take care of kids and even old folks allows skilled women to join the workforce, this increasing productivity.
The study found that private household workers make up about 7 per cent of the labour force, raise the income of local low-skilled workers and push overall income for nationals. As well as raising national income, the presence of maids increases tax revenue.
Among the Asian countries hiring maids, Singapore gives the lowest pay. Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan have raised maids' salaries a long time ago. Employers have complained that aside from the salary given to us, they still have to pay levy. So do employers in the countries mentioned above. Besides paying levy, they also give maids a day off every week and during holidays. Why can't Singapore do the same?
Domestic workers here are not included under the Employment Act. Separate laws apply to us. We are overworked and the laws to protect us are weak.
With regard to our salary, why can't the Government set a minimum wage for maids? Make it mandatory, not to be 'negotiated freely between workers and employers". Our monthly $350 salary divided by 16 working hours a day is equivalent to 73 cents per hour. Who wants to work at this hourly rate?
I feel envy when I learnt that the salaries of nurses and caregivers had been increased. We are the primary caregivers of Singaporean families. Although they called us maids, our job is more complicated than theirs.
We play a very important role in the lives of the people here and contribute to the country's economy.
Why it is very hard to set a minimum wage for us? Is it because Singapore subscribes to the principle of a free labour market, where wages are determined by market forces?
Aida S. Yuson (Ms) "
Straits Times 23 Mar -
"THE other day over lunch, my friend described how her Singaporean neighbours were not feeding their maid. The maid was literally begging for food, so my friend began feeding her through the back gate. Unfortunately, the neighbour found out and has forbidden the maid to go anywhere outside or talk to anyone.
We discussed what we could do to help the poor woman but found that our choices were limited if we did not want to risk getting her deported.
Two days later, I discovered that the same thing was happening in the apartment next to mine. The Singaporean neighbours had gone through three maids in six months, all of whom were denied food, not allowed a single day off, and had their passports kept from them. When the maids finally quit, the employers refused to 'release' them for employment elsewhere, so they were forced to return home.
The current maid is also begging for food through the back window. She has lost weight and looks pale. She does not have a single day off and is forced to work from 5am until after midnight. She lives in fear that her employer will find out that we are giving her food, as the employer had threatened to beat her if she communicates with anyone.
I called the Ministry of Manpower, which offered me no solution that would protect her from deportation.
It is astonishing that this could occur in such a wealthy and educated country. Singaporeans should be outraged at this behaviour and also concerned about the stereotypes that have emerged.
In my heart I know that Singaporeans do not all behave like this. But why are they not standing up against this immoral treatment and demanding that their Government take action - such as setting up a special division to deal with these complaints and protect the maids involved? Clearly not enough is being done.
Laura Thornton-Olivry (Ms)"
Straits Times 30 Mar -
"I REFER to Ms Aida Yuson's letter, 'Why is it hard to set a minimum wage for maids?' (Online forum, March 23) and applaud her for standing up and asking for minimum wages to be set for domestic helpers.
I think that being paid $350 a month and working up to 18 hours a day is exploitation.
We hear about campaigners who lobby firms such as Nike to ensure its goods are not made by people in Third World countries who are exploited because of poor labour laws. Surely, we don't want the reputation of being a First World nation that is accused of paying our domestic helpers poorly.
I'm not sure if Singapore has a minimum wage, but even if it did not, surely common sense dictates that 73 cents a day is markedly insufficient.
Singaporeans complain about the cost of living in Singapore - has anyone considered what it must be like for these domestic helpers who probably haven't seen a pay rise in years? At the very least, their wages should increase at the same rate as Singapore's annual inflation rate. As we look forward to January each year to learn of our pay rises, why can't we do the same for our domestic helpers?
We need to stem the mentality that domestic helpers belong to a separate breed or class of people.
At the end of the day, we're all part of the same human race and should treat everyone with respect.
I live on my own in London and I maintain my own home on top of working a full-time job and I know how difficult it is to clean, cook, wash and iron.
Domestic helpers are there to provide a more comfortable life for us. They do an important job in keeping our homes clean and tidy.
Think about it - at the end of the work day, you look forward to going home and relaxing. Ask yourself - who's been maintaining that environment for you to relax at home?
Now, reach for your pockets and pay these people a decent wage.
Alvin Sim Khim Woon
London, United Kingdom"
March 29, Straits Times -
For a Resident Expatriate, this foreign Fungi is as persitently ungrateful as a parasitic plant in killing the healthy domicile with its derogatory remarks after having suckled the benefits from its environment.Originally posted by oxford mushroom:The blinkered Atobe is so blinded that he will not see reason, but hopefully not all Singaporeans:
"I AM one of the thousands of Filipino maids in Singapore. Let me share my opinion about the proposed US$400 monthly salary of Filipino maids.
This recommendation made by the Philippine government is a good move for us because we work more than 12 hours a day with less than eight hours of continuous rest.
According to a study conducted by Harvard University, Singapore's maids boost the economy. Having maids at home who can take care of kids and even old folks allows skilled women to join the workforce, this increasing productivity.
The study found that private household workers make up about 7 per cent of the labour force, raise the income of local low-skilled workers and push overall income for nationals. As well as raising national income, the presence of maids increases tax revenue.
Among the Asian countries hiring maids, Singapore gives the lowest pay. Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan have raised maids' salaries a long time ago. Employers have complained that aside from the salary given to us, they still have to pay levy. So do employers in the countries mentioned above. Besides paying levy, they also give maids a day off every week and during holidays. Why can't Singapore do the same?
Domestic workers here are not included under the Employment Act. Separate laws apply to us. We are overworked and the laws to protect us are weak.
With regard to our salary, why can't the Government set a minimum wage for maids? Make it mandatory, not to be 'negotiated freely between workers and employers". Our monthly $350 salary divided by 16 working hours a day is equivalent to 73 cents per hour. Who wants to work at this hourly rate?
I feel envy when I learnt that the salaries of nurses and caregivers had been increased. We are the primary caregivers of Singaporean families. Although they called us maids, our job is more complicated than theirs.
We play a very important role in the lives of the people here and contribute to the country's economy.
Why it is very hard to set a minimum wage for us? Is it because Singapore subscribes to the principle of a free labour market, where wages are determined by market forces?
Aida S. Yuson (Ms) "
Straits Times 23 Mar
Blinkered ?
Or have you been cornered to the extent that you have no better answer then to avoid the demand for your proof to indicate 'WHAT IS YOUR MAGIC NUMBER' to confirm that your statement that 'THE MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
Will another three more isolated individual letters help in adding to your numbers - which you have so far only managed to accumulate only 147 maids killed since 1999 - (a period of 7 years and 3 months) ?
Where is your own evidence to substantiate your derogatory accusations that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
If your position is not that of a hollow superficial moralistic bigot, who will stoop at condemning Singapore while ignoring the failure of UK Society in hiding 10,000 child slaves in this 21st Century.
Are you being reasonable, or am I being blind to reason in the manner of your accusation that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
Is Singapore the only Asian Country paying the LOWEST WAGES to foreign domestic helpers ?
Why has the research left out Malaysia - whose exchange rates allow them to employ Indonesian and Fillipino maids at even lower wages than that paid in Singapore?
Why was this fact not included in this obviously flawed report - (is your PhD qualification for real ) ?
Can the foreign maids employed in Singapore increase in any significant way the productive output of Singapore, when only 150,000 maids are employed into supposedly 150,000 families ?
How many of these 150,000 maids employed allow another adult to work, and how many are employed to look after the aged and infirmed ?
Even if an adult is released into the productive workforce, how much net income will this adult bring into the family - after deducting the maid's wage, foreign maid fee, additional expense for food, water, and electricity to feed another new addition into the family ?
Are you not being insulting towards Singaporeans, who have accomodated your residentship only to receive your unthinking and uninvited opinions that derided the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS AS MAID ABUSERS ?
Consider yourself fortunate that you have at least received the patience of this Singaporean to the nonsense that you dare throw at us, despite having benefitted from the hospitality of the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS whom you have accused as MAID ABUSERS.
Do you expect any other Singaporeans to be sympathetic to your cause to help your "Friendly Maid" whom you enjoy your nightly tryst on the phone ? -
For one who has displayed an expansive legalistic opinions, I am surprised that you are not in any position to offer any legal solution to help another one more of your new found abused 'Maid Friends'.Originally posted by oxford mushroom:"THE other day over lunch, my friend described how her Singaporean neighbours were not feeding their maid. The maid was literally begging for food, so my friend began feeding her through the back gate. Unfortunately, the neighbour found out and has forbidden the maid to go anywhere outside or talk to anyone.
We discussed what we could do to help the poor woman but found that our choices were limited if we did not want to risk getting her deported.
Two days later, I discovered that the same thing was happening in the apartment next to mine. The Singaporean neighbours had gone through three maids in six months, all of whom were denied food, not allowed a single day off, and had their passports kept from them. When the maids finally quit, the employers refused to 'release' them for employment elsewhere, so they were forced to return home.
The current maid is also begging for food through the back window. She has lost weight and looks pale. She does not have a single day off and is forced to work from 5am until after midnight. She lives in fear that her employer will find out that we are giving her food, as the employer had threatened to beat her if she communicates with anyone.
I called the Ministry of Manpower, which offered me no solution that would protect her from deportation.
It is astonishing that this could occur in such a wealthy and educated country. Singaporeans should be outraged at this behaviour and also concerned about the stereotypes that have emerged.
In my heart I know that Singaporeans do not all behave like this. But why are they not standing up against this immoral treatment and demanding that their Government take action - such as setting up a special division to deal with these complaints and protect the maids involved? Clearly not enough is being done.
Laura Thornton-Olivry (Ms)"
Straits Times 30 Mar
Should Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry be astonished of such an occurence in this supposed wealthy and educated society ?
Is it not an established fact that what she see is but a false veneer of the seeming success that the Ruling Party has attempted for everyone to believe and see ?
Beneath the glass, steel, and concrete towers and malls, does she have the ability to understand what makes the Singaporean; or is she the typical simpleton visitor - whose judgments are simply based on the One-Minute Tour and Contact at every stop ?
Is this not the same Government that the Resident Fungi has been so defensive to the supposed many successes achieved ?
Is it odd that we should see the Resident Fungi attempting to justify its parasitic position with another useless blinkered opinion of its own compatriot in UK ?Originally posted by oxford mushroom:"I REFER to Ms Aida Yuson's letter, 'Why is it hard to set a minimum wage for maids?' (Online forum, March 23) and applaud her for standing up and asking for minimum wages to be set for domestic helpers.
I think that being paid $350 a month and working up to 18 hours a day is exploitation.
We hear about campaigners who lobby firms such as Nike to ensure its goods are not made by people in Third World countries who are exploited because of poor labour laws. Surely, we don't want the reputation of being a First World nation that is accused of paying our domestic helpers poorly.
I'm not sure if Singapore has a minimum wage, but even if it did not, surely common sense dictates that 73 cents a day is markedly insufficient.
Singaporeans complain about the cost of living in Singapore - has anyone considered what it must be like for these domestic helpers who probably haven't seen a pay rise in years? At the very least, their wages should increase at the same rate as Singapore's annual inflation rate. As we look forward to January each year to learn of our pay rises, why can't we do the same for our domestic helpers?
We need to stem the mentality that domestic helpers belong to a separate breed or class of people.
At the end of the day, we're all part of the same human race and should treat everyone with respect.
I live on my own in London and I maintain my own home on top of working a full-time job and I know how difficult it is to clean, cook, wash and iron.
Domestic helpers are there to provide a more comfortable life for us. They do an important job in keeping our homes clean and tidy.
Think about it - at the end of the work day, you look forward to going home and relaxing. Ask yourself - who's been maintaining that environment for you to relax at home?
Now, reach for your pockets and pay these people a decent wage.
Alvin Sim Khim Woon
London, United Kingdom"
March 29, Straits Times
What possibly does this Alvin Sim know of Singapore and Singaporeans while being in London, United Kingdom for the last - how many - years ?
Is he in any position to comment on the letter written by Ms Aida Yuson's letter when he had no experience working in Singapore, not seem to be conscious of the experiences, conditions and obligations that a Singaporean Employer is subjected to by the Government ?
Is he is any position to comment about the minimum wage that is being proposed to the 150,000 foreign maids employed in Singapore, when he is not even subjected to the local work and wage environment that Singaporeans are subjected to today.
Since 2002, when mass scaling down of Singaporeans was the order of the day - from businesses, industries, and manufacturing facilities, Singaporean workers have been subjected to a flurry of bullying tactics - by the Government, Employers and the NTUC - to accept new employment terms and conditions to reflect a change to a "non-iron rice bowl".
In the new Economy, with most Singaporeans receiving new contract documents that will employ them only on short terms of 1, or 2, or 3, or 5 years - and subject to annual reviews, and with wages of Singaporeans similarly pressed low - what is new about Filippina domestic workers receiving a portion of the Singaporean wage ?
At least, the foreign maid can get to mail her wages home to her family living in an environment with a LOWER COST OF LIVING compared to Singapore.
According to the data submitted by the Resident Fungii, there are only 150,000 maids supposedly employed in a population of 4.5 million; and from data available in these 6 references given by the Resident Fungi - that merely amount to a total of 147 maids killed plus 2 maids abused, surely this cannot compare to the atrocious 10,000 child slaves who are not paid even a single penny in wages ?
What about the conditions of the butlers and chambermaids, who are expected to maintain a stiff upper lip in the presence of their Employers ?
Are their working terms and conditions no different from what is expected of the foreign maids by the Singapore Employers ?
After all that is said, it remains clear that the Resident Fungi cannot possibly produce any evidence to back-up its insulting statement that the "MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS". -
More reports of Singaporeans abusing domestic maids. It is time for stricter legislation:
"ThE other day over lunch, my friend described how her Singaporean neighbours were not feeding their maid. The maid was literally begging for food, so my friend began feeding her through the back gate. Unfortunately, the neighbour found out and has forbidden the maid to go anywhere outside or talk to anyone.
We discussed what we could do to help the poor woman but found that our choices were limited if we did not want to risk getting her deported.
Two days later, I discovered that the same thing was happening in the apartment next to mine. The Singaporean neighbours had gone through three maids in six months, all of whom were denied food, not allowed a single day off, and had their passports kept from them. When the maids finally quit, the employers refused to 'release' them for employment elsewhere, so they were forced to return home.
The current maid is also begging for food through the back window. She has lost weight and looks pale. She does not have a single day off and is forced to work from 5am until after midnight. She lives in fear that her employer will find out that we are giving her food, as the employer had threatened to beat her if she communicates with anyone.
I called the Ministry of Manpower, which offered me no solution that would protect her from deportation.
It is astonishing that this could occur in such a wealthy and educated country. Singaporeans should be outraged at this behaviour and also concerned about the stereotypes that have emerged.
In my heart I know that Singaporeans do not all behave like this. But why are they not standing up against this immoral treatment and demanding that their Government take action - such as setting up a special division to deal with these complaints and protect the maids involved? Clearly not enough is being done.
Laura Thornton-Olivry (Ms)"
Straits Times 30 Mar -
A SLICE of bread for breakfast, half a bowl of plain porridge for lunch and no dinner. That was the daily ration for one Filipino maid here.
Now waiting in an abused maid shelter to go back to the Philippines, the 30-year-old recounted how her employer counted the number of bread slices in a bag and checked the levels of mayonnaise and peanut butter in jars every morning and evening.
Within six weeks of starting work, her weight dropped from 70kg to 52kg. Last December, she ran away.
'When I told her I was hungry, she said I didn't do housework properly. Once I fell because I was so hungry. The doctor said I had a stomach ulcer.'
While figures are not available, embassies, agents and maid welfare agencies told The Straits Times that being starved seems to be a common complaint among maids here.
On Friday, Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry, a research director in her 30s, wrote to the Forum page saying her neighbour's maid had been begging for food through her back window.
'She would rub her stomach and put her hand in her mouth to tell us she's hungry. We would tie a sandwich or bread in a plastic bag and throw it over to her,' she said. 'If I lodge a complaint against the neighbours, I don't want her to be sent back home.'
Mr Fachry Sulaiman, the Indonesian embassy's first secretary of protocol and consular matters, said: 'We've had maids turning up at the embassy looking pale and weak, saying they had not eaten for a week.'
Embassies usually call up employers and agents, but sometimes serious cases are referred to the Manpower Ministry (MOM).
A survey conducted by the research and advocacy group Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) in 2003 found that five per cent of 147 reported maid abuse cases were related to malnourishment.
'This means the maids are consistently underfed,' said TWC2 acting president John Gee.
The Indonesian Family Network, a support group comprising Indonesian maids, said 25 of the 45 calls it received last month were from maids complaining of a lack of food.
'They ate leftovers, fish and chicken bones. Some had no meals for days,' said Ms Nurifah, one of the network's founders.
A sick Indonesian maid called the group two months ago claiming that she had not eaten for three days.
Counsellor Tuti Hangtayene, said: 'The employer said she would dock her pay and she had to pay $2 to cook a packet of instant noodles.'
While some employers might forget to give their maids adequate food, 'some bad ones deliberately deprive them of food to show that they are lower in status', said researcher Ms Noorashikin Abdul.
Under the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, employers who fail to provide their maids with adequate rest and meals risk being fined up to $5,000 and jailed up to six months' for breaching work permit conditions.
Last year, MOM prosecuted 42 employers for abusing their maids. The Foreign Manpower Management Division has been set up to ensure that foreign workers are treated well.
Troubled maids and concerned members of the public can call its toll-free hotline at 1800-6339-5505 to report mistreatment, such as lack of food, sleep or rest.
Said MOM spokesman: 'We would like to assure Ms Laura that if a foreign domestic worker (FDW) complains of ill-treatment... the Ministry will investigate the complaint and assist them. Errant employers will be prosecuted and FDWs need not fear reprisals.'
Straits Times 30 Mar -
Singaporeans can and should report it if they encounter abuse of domestic maids by their neighbours. Use your handphone camera to photograph or video record and submit to the authorities for investigation:
"I REFER to the letter, 'Why maids had to beg for food' (ST, March 30), by Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry.
Under the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, all employers must provide their foreign maids adequate rest and meals. The penalty for employers who breach such work-permit conditions is a fine of up to $5,000 and jail for up to six months. Last year, 42 maid employers were prosecuted by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) for abusing their maids.
Ms Thornton-Olivry suggested that MOM sets up a department to protect maids. We have already done so. The Foreign Manpower Management Division was set up to ensure that foreign workers are treated well. It operates a dedicated toll-free hotline for foreign workers (1800-6339-5505 ). This number is made known to maids through the employment booklet when they first arrive in Singapore and when they attend the mandatory safety orientation course.
Maids in need of help or concerned members of the public who know of maid mistreatment, such as lack of food, sleep or rest, can contact us.
We would like to assure Ms Thornton-Olivry that if a maid complains of ill-treatment, such as being overworked or not being given sufficient food, MOM will investigate the complaint and assist the maid.
Errant employers will be prosecuted and maids need not fear reprisal.
We invite Ms Thornton-Olivry to contact our officer on 6419-2679 to provide us with details of her allegations for investigation."
Jean Tan (Ms)
Director
Corporate Communicationsfor Permanent Secretary
Ministry of Manpower
Straits Times, 31 Mar -
More report, or simply a rehash of this letter that you had already printed in your yesterday's post, which I had already addressed ?Originally posted by oxford mushroom:More reports of Singaporeans abusing domestic maids. It is time for stricter legislation:
"ThE other day over lunch, my friend described how her Singaporean neighbours were not feeding their maid. The maid was literally begging for food, so my friend began feeding her through the back gate. Unfortunately, the neighbour found out and has forbidden the maid to go anywhere outside or talk to anyone.
We discussed what we could do to help the poor woman but found that our choices were limited if we did not want to risk getting her deported.
Two days later, I discovered that the same thing was happening in the apartment next to mine. The Singaporean neighbours had gone through three maids in six months, all of whom were denied food, not allowed a single day off, and had their passports kept from them. When the maids finally quit, the employers refused to 'release' them for employment elsewhere, so they were forced to return home.
The current maid is also begging for food through the back window. She has lost weight and looks pale. She does not have a single day off and is forced to work from 5am until after midnight. She lives in fear that her employer will find out that we are giving her food, as the employer had threatened to beat her if she communicates with anyone.
I called the Ministry of Manpower, which offered me no solution that would protect her from deportation.
It is astonishing that this could occur in such a wealthy and educated country. Singaporeans should be outraged at this behaviour and also concerned about the stereotypes that have emerged.
In my heart I know that Singaporeans do not all behave like this. But why are they not standing up against this immoral treatment and demanding that their Government take action - such as setting up a special division to deal with these complaints and protect the maids involved? Clearly not enough is being done.
Laura Thornton-Olivry (Ms)"
Straits Times 30 Mar
Are you getting so desparate to shore up whatever nett worth that remains with your deteriorating credibality, that you must regenerate one more letter to substantiate your baseless and wild allegation that the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS ?
Was one of your "Maid Friends" abused by any Singaporean to such an extent that could sully your sado-masochistic senses that it will move you to insult Singaporeans ?
What could possibly drive you to return the hospitality of this wonderful Singapore by sullying Singaporeans with your derogatory remark - that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
If you have the courage to make such a remark, the least you could possibly do to redeem yourself and return the hospitality of Singaporeans is to come up with the evidence, or else apologise for your false allegation and withdraw your statement. -
Are the conditions of these maids worst than the 10,000 child slaves found in UK in 2001 ?Originally posted by oxford mushroom:A SLICE of bread for breakfast, half a bowl of plain porridge for lunch and no dinner. That was the daily ration for one Filipino maid here.
Now waiting in an abused maid shelter to go back to the Philippines, the 30-year-old recounted how her employer counted the number of bread slices in a bag and checked the levels of mayonnaise and peanut butter in jars every morning and evening.
Within six weeks of starting work, her weight dropped from 70kg to 52kg. Last December, she ran away.
'When I told her I was hungry, she said I didn't do housework properly. Once I fell because I was so hungry. The doctor said I had a stomach ulcer.'
While figures are not available, embassies, agents and maid welfare agencies told The Straits Times that being starved seems to be a common complaint among maids here.
On Friday, Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry, a research director in her 30s, wrote to the Forum page saying her neighbour's maid had been begging for food through her back window.
'She would rub her stomach and put her hand in her mouth to tell us she's hungry. We would tie a sandwich or bread in a plastic bag and throw it over to her,' she said. 'If I lodge a complaint against the neighbours, I don't want her to be sent back home.'
Mr Fachry Sulaiman, the Indonesian embassy's first secretary of protocol and consular matters, said: 'We've had maids turning up at the embassy looking pale and weak, saying they had not eaten for a week.'
Embassies usually call up employers and agents, but sometimes serious cases are referred to the Manpower Ministry (MOM).
A survey conducted by the research and advocacy group Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2) in 2003 found that five per cent of 147 reported maid abuse cases were related to malnourishment.
'This means the maids are consistently underfed,' said TWC2 acting president John Gee.
The Indonesian Family Network, a support group comprising Indonesian maids, said 25 of the 45 calls it received last month were from maids complaining of a lack of food.
'They ate leftovers, fish and chicken bones. Some had no meals for days,' said Ms Nurifah, one of the network's founders.
A sick Indonesian maid called the group two months ago claiming that she had not eaten for three days.
Counsellor Tuti Hangtayene, said: 'The employer said she would dock her pay and she had to pay $2 to cook a packet of instant noodles.'
While some employers might forget to give their maids adequate food, 'some bad ones deliberately deprive them of food to show that they are lower in status', said researcher Ms Noorashikin Abdul.
Under the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, employers who fail to provide their maids with adequate rest and meals risk being fined up to $5,000 and jailed up to six months' for breaching work permit conditions.
Last year, MOM prosecuted 42 employers for abusing their maids. The Foreign Manpower Management Division has been set up to ensure that foreign workers are treated well.
Troubled maids and concerned members of the public can call its toll-free hotline at 1800-6339-5505 to report mistreatment, such as lack of food, sleep or rest.
Said MOM spokesman: 'We would like to assure Ms Laura that if a foreign domestic worker (FDW) complains of ill-treatment... the Ministry will investigate the complaint and assist them. Errant employers will be prosecuted and FDWs need not fear reprisals.'
Straits Times 30 Mar
How many more are hidden and remain undiscovered in UK and across Europe ?
In 2005, the CIA reported that 50,000 Asian women were traffiked into the USA as slaves.
How should Singaporeans treat these two significantly larger numbers of slavery in the UK and in the USA ?
How should we view the citizens of these two leading democracies in this 21st Century ?
If 147 PLUS 4 cases of maid abused will make the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS AS MAID ABUSERS - what should we make of the MAJORITY OF THE UK AND USA CITIZENS as ?
21st Century Babarians ? -
147 cases of Maid Death since 1999 PLUS the 42 Maid Employers having been prosecuted - (even if we assist you by being generous to DOUBLE-COUNT these 42 maid employers as not being included in the 147 cases, still hardly justify your wild allegations that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS'.Originally posted by oxford mushroom:Singaporeans can and should report it if they encounter abuse of domestic maids by their neighbours. Use your handphone camera to photograph or video record and submit to the authorities for investigation:
"I REFER to the letter, 'Why maids had to beg for food' (ST, March 30), by Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry.
Under the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, all employers must provide their foreign maids adequate rest and meals. The penalty for employers who breach such work-permit conditions is a fine of up to $5,000 and jail for up to six months. Last year, 42 maid employers were prosecuted by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) for abusing their maids.
Ms Thornton-Olivry suggested that MOM sets up a department to protect maids. We have already done so. The Foreign Manpower Management Division was set up to ensure that foreign workers are treated well. It operates a dedicated toll-free hotline for foreign workers (1800-6339-5505 ). This number is made known to maids through the employment booklet when they first arrive in Singapore and when they attend the mandatory safety orientation course.
Maids in need of help or concerned members of the public who know of maid mistreatment, such as lack of food, sleep or rest, can contact us.
We would like to assure Ms Thornton-Olivry that if a maid complains of ill-treatment, such as being overworked or not being given sufficient food, MOM will investigate the complaint and assist the maid.
Errant employers will be prosecuted and maids need not fear reprisal.
We invite Ms Thornton-Olivry to contact our officer on 6419-2679 to provide us with details of her allegations for investigation."
Jean Tan (Ms)
Director
Corporate Communicationsfor Permanent Secretary
Ministry of Manpower
Straits Times, 31 Mar
If we were to follow your line of thinking in enlarging the net to include all Singaporeans as maid abusers from these 100 odd cases that are known; we could possibly deduce that from the number of 10,000 child slaves - taken from Africa to UK - that are known in the United Kingdom in 2001, the MAJORITY OF UK CITIZENS ARE SLAVE DRIVERS.
Could this be the reason for the Resident Fungi to leave Oxford, preferring to live in Singapore, and admitting itself to be a Resident Expatriate ?
Did you lose your influence in Oxford - despite your PhD qualification - and become a pariah to the larger slave owning community in UK ?
You may well end up being stateless, if you persist in deriding this host country with your continued false allegation that the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS.
Over the course of two weeks, you could hardly come up with any substantial numbers to show as evidence to support your derogatory statements towards Singaporeans that the majority of us are maid abusers.
After two weeks, you can only come up with 5 original posts out of 6 attempts to prove your statement, of which the count remains only at 147 PLUS 42.
Try harder to prove your position before you get impotently choked through my constant fumigation, as too long an exposure will make you useless in your preferred role of a sado-masochistic character.
One can only wonder at the reasons that the maids will have you as a protector in Singapore ? -
This reminded me of gossips around dinner tables when Singaporeans talk about their maids. Never a nice word for them. One particular one is that they will grap all the foods they can find and become overweight. Singaporeans are never quite the thinking lot, and when this spreads, it can become the general truth and naive employers will do inhumane things like depriving the maids of foods.Originally posted by oxford mushroom:Singaporeans can and should report it if they encounter abuse of domestic maids by their neighbours. Use your handphone camera to photograph or video record and submit to the authorities for investigation:
"I REFER to the letter, 'Why maids had to beg for food' (ST, March 30), by Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry.
Under the Employment of Foreign Workers Act, all employers must provide their foreign maids adequate rest and meals. The penalty for employers who breach such work-permit conditions is a fine of up to $5,000 and jail for up to six months. Last year, 42 maid employers were prosecuted by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) for abusing their maids.
Ms Thornton-Olivry suggested that MOM sets up a department to protect maids. We have already done so. The Foreign Manpower Management Division was set up to ensure that foreign workers are treated well. It operates a dedicated toll-free hotline for foreign workers (1800-6339-5505 ). This number is made known to maids through the employment booklet when they first arrive in Singapore and when they attend the mandatory safety orientation course.
Maids in need of help or concerned members of the public who know of maid mistreatment, such as lack of food, sleep or rest, can contact us.
We would like to assure Ms Thornton-Olivry that if a maid complains of ill-treatment, such as being overworked or not being given sufficient food, MOM will investigate the complaint and assist the maid.
Errant employers will be prosecuted and maids need not fear reprisal.
We invite Ms Thornton-Olivry to contact our officer on 6419-2679 to provide us with details of her allegations for investigation."
Jean Tan (Ms)
Director
Corporate Communicationsfor Permanent Secretary
Ministry of Manpower
Straits Times, 31 Mar -
With plenty of Singaporeans like Atobe around, it is not surprising that domestic maids are treated this way. Unfortunately, their lot is unlikely to change, as long as the majority of Singaporeans think it is acceptable to confine their movements, restrict their social circle and make them work 18 hours a day without day offs.Originally posted by chiabaliao:This reminded me of gossips around dinner tables when Singaporeans talk about their maids. Never a nice word for them. One particular one is that they will grap all the foods they can find and become overweight. Singaporeans are never quite the thinking lot, and when this spreads, it can become the general truth and naive employers will do inhumane things like depriving the maids of foods. -
Originally posted by oxford mushroom:
If your Foreign Maid Friends are subjected to such seemingly 'atrocious' employment terms, what kind of terms do you think the 5-Star Butlers and Chamber Maids are being subjected to when working in the Upper Crust of European and UK Societies ?
With plenty of Singaporeans like Atobe around, it is not surprising that domestic maids are treated this way. Unfortunately, their lot is unlikely to change, as long as the majority of Singaporeans think it is acceptable to confine their movements, restrict their social circle and make them work 18 hours a day without day offs.
Is the Queen of UK more liberal to her Royal household staff than the average Singaporean Employer ?
At least, Singaporeans employ the maids legally compared to the 10,000 UK households who are exposed for 'owning' 10,000 CHILD SLAVES smuggled from the African continent - and in this 21st Century.
By your ability to count the total of 147 cases PLUS 42 more cases - these will make it significant for you to see plenty of Atobe's around, while the 10,000 child slaves found in England means nothing.
Should we expect to wait till you indulge in paedophilism before the 10,000 child slaves in UK get your attention, while you currently immerse your attention in your Adult 'Maid Friends' with your sado-masochistic activities ?
Or have you been thrown out like a pariah from Oxford and UK for your attitude in generalising everything in one lump ?
Your self-acclaimed PhD must have been awarded for your ability to inflate issues - inflating rubber products, and become infatuated with all things that can be inflatable. -
The media is taking notice of such maid abuse:
A SLICE of bread and a bowl of porridge, 250 calories.
This is what some maids get a day.
Two hundred calories is hardly enough, they actually need 10 times that amount (2,100 calories).
Nutritionist Cyndy Au was shocked to hear of such a diet and said: 'Any lay man can tell that someone having these meals would be grossly undernourished.'
Checks with Embassies, and maid welfare agencies showed that insufficient food has surfaced as a common complaint among maids here. And nutritionists say that with the high levels of activity and low intake, maids who are starved will eventually waste away.
The issue of insufficient food arose in a letter to The Straits Times' forum page on Friday, when Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry, a research director in her 30s said her neighbour's maid has been begging for food through the back window.
Also, in a case before the courts, an Indonesian maid whose employer has been accused of abusing her told of being starved. In testimony last Thursday, she told the court that 'ma'am never gave me food and I was hungry'.
These are not new occurrences.
In 2002, a maid, given just two packets of instant noodles over lunch and dinner, had to steal apple juice and porridge from the children. She was eventually beaten to death.
Looking at examples of the spartan meals that some maids have, Ms Au told The Sunday Times it's obvious that their 'energy intake is much lower than the energy required, especially considering the nature of her work'.
According to the Health Promotion Board's website, a woman aged between 18 and 30, who weighs about 54kg, would need 2,100 calories a day if she engages in medium levels of activity.
However, a daily intake of water, a slice of bread, and watery porridge would not go beyond 250 calories.
Also, Ms Au pointed out that there is no variety.
'Not all food groups are present hence the nutrients are not obtained to meet the daily requirement,' she said.
She added that these maids would eventually waste away because their fat a protein storage would be used up.
Also, they would feel tired, have low immunity and might suffer from giddiness and a lack of concentration.
But often, employers aren't abusive from the onset.
Psychiatrist Brian Yeo said that when things are not done to satisfaction, employer may then exercise forms of control like reducing pay or food. These are more passive forms of abuse that may escalate over time.
Agreed psychologist Danny Ng: 'It is really an issue of control and power. They can control someone else's diet and it is done to establish boundaries of who is the boss and who can control the other.'
Both agreed that abuse often occurs when employers who are stressed at work or even at home, take their frustrations out on the maid.
Dr Yeo added that the spouse, usually the husband, does not intervene as it may appear that he is siding with the maid instead of the wife.
But it isn't always a problem of nasty employers.
'Sometimes it might be an issue of cultural differences,' said Mr Angland Seah owner of maid agency AJS Manpower consultants.
In the case of Filipina maids, he said they are used to a bowl of rice for breakfast and find that bread is not enough.
The company often advises employers to cook extra rice for dinner, so that the maid can have some the next morning.
Another maid agent Yeo Boon Loong said it is often a two-way problem.
'Maids and employers have different expectations and when they are not met, problems arise, but if employer, can understand what the maid needs and give a proper meal, things might be easily resolved,' he said.
Troubled maids and concerned members of the public can call the Ministry of Manpower's toll-free hot-line at 1800-339-5505
Straits Times 31 Mar -
A report from an ongoing trial over yet another case of maid abuse:
"AN INDONESIAN maid had more to say about the alleged abuses she suffered - including being bitten twice by a pet dog - on the second day of a housewife's trial yesterday.
The 23-year-old maid recounted in a district court how Tay Siew Hoon, her employer, threw a stool, a dog's bowl, and a knife at her.
But the maid managed to deflect them with the stool. That was when the woman ordered her pet dog to bite her, she claimed.
She decided to pack up that morning and left for the Indonesian embassy.
Tay, 51, has claimed trial to nine charges - four allegedly committed on Sept 23, 2005 and five on March 21 last year at her Changi home.
She is accused, among other things, of ordering her dog to bite the maid, and of molesting her and gripping her neck.
The maid told the court it was about 1am one day in September 2005 when Tay suddenly opened her room's door.
Tay pulled her hair from behind, turned her around, pushed her and slapped her on both cheeks, she alleged.
Tay gave her a few more hard slaps and a few strands of her hair fell from the woman's grip on her head.
She cried out when she felt a pain in her buttocks. She turned around and saw that Tay had hit her with a stool which she then threw at her.
The pet bowl and knife followed but were deflected by the stool which she had picked up.
Tay then called in her shih tzu Yuki, a toy breed. Carrying the diminutive dog, Tay said: 'Yuki, bite'' .
It bit her on her right thigh several times, and her thigh bled.
She cried and yelled out in pain and tried to push the dog away.
Meanwhile, Tay had walked out to switch on the television to high volume before returning to cover the maid's mouth, saying 'diam diam'' (Malay for quiet).
This time, the dog bit the maid on her left arm.
She ran out of the room to Tay's son's room. He and his father, Mr Kim Hua Siang, helped put a plaster on her wound.
The maid then said she wanted to go to the agent. But Mr Kim told her to wait till her wound had healed. He gave her a Panadol to relieve her pain.
The maid said she did not sleep the rest of the morning.
Later that morning, she packed her bags and left for the Indonesian embassy.
A police report was made and she was examined by a doctor in hospital.
The hearing continues on Monday."
31 Mar Straits Times -
Oxford Mushroom has brought up a very valid issue. Anybody with a heart should support his call for a change in maid hiring polcies.
However, his noble intention is somehow deviated and diluted, at times
reduced (sadly) to a mindless exchange of spiteful jibes.
How many maids are living like hell in this successful first world country of ours? Nobody knows. But we can safely say the majority of them are suffering, albeit to different extent.
Anybody with five hundred dollars to spare each month (the maid gets half of it) can become an employer - a MASTER to be exact. The rich tai tai, the spineless men, the HDB Ah Peh and Ah Soh (no pun intended) suddenly feel like they are the Emperor and Empress, not unlike what they see in those drama serials on TV. They feel good that somebody is calling them Sir or Madam; and at a snap of the finger, this person will come running to them. They can say what they want about this lowly being in front of them as she has no right of reply. The "emperor" and "empress" only want to hear "Yes Sir" or "Yes Madam". Little brats, if any, in the "Palace" will no doubt feel like princes and princesses. After all, from books and movies, they know full well who and what a maid is. And their "high class" parents confirm their belief and encourage their actions towards this lesser mortal residing in their house.
Granted there are still human beings in our society, who treat their maids
like human beings. I hope I am wrong, but these are the exceptions rather than the norm. Singaporeans by and large, want to get MAXIMUM RETURN after paying for something.
They want their pound of flesh - if only there is somebody who can tell them to take the flesh without spilling a drop a blood.
While we deliberate and potificate, we cannot deny the fact that there are indeed poor souls suffering out there. So we all know the problem - and it would be cruel of us to say otherwise - now what is the solution?
I have a proposal for MOM. Hopefully the Straits Times will publish it.
-
How pathetically persistent the parasitical efforts that a Mushroom can be in gnawing away the hard trunk of a solid tree ?
Will these 2 additional news article help to improve the Mushroom's claim that the "MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS" ?
The count still remain as 147 cases (since 1999) PLUS 42 cases (with a possibility of these 42 already being included in the initial 147 count), and now with these 2 supposedly new cases out of a population of 150,000 maids employed by only 4,500,000 Singaporeans.
How does this brilliant PhD Mushroom conclude that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
Am I defending the abusive Singaporeans, or am I defending the good name of the MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS from being slandered by this foreign Fungi supposedly from Oxford, and now claiming to be a Resident Expatriate ?
Are Resident Expatriates supposed to have higher moral values than Singaporeans ?
If so, why have those Resident Expatriates not commented on the even worst situation of the 10,000 African Children being discovered in 2001 being kept in slave like conditions in UK, and also the 50,000 Asian Women being trafficked into the USA in 2005 alone.
Are the slave like conditions of the 10,000 African children in UK not worst than the abused Foreign maids in Singapore, when these African children should be free enjoying Life and School instead of being kept in a modern society to work WITHOUT PAY ?
In the UK society that is accustomed to such servitude envirionment, do we expect a better condition in the Upper Crust of UK society - (and even in Europe too ) - for those employed as Butlers and Chambermaids ?
The fact of the matter remains clear that there is no basis for this obnoxious foreign fungii to make such a slanderous statement towards Singaporeans - especially after enjoying the hospitality and security that we have provided.
An apology with a retraction of the slanderous statement should be the minimum that can be accepted from this foreign fungi - supposedly with a PhD from Oxford.
In any case, judging from the past performance of avoidance to clear facts, the behaviour of this supposedly PhD qualified person already reveal a flaw in character, which one can attribute to it being basically a stateless entity and merely a parasitical flotsam.
Is it any wonder that he will find solace and friendship with those few abused foreign maids, and will slander the 'MAJORITY OF 4,500,000 SINGAPOREANS as MAID ABUSERS' ? -
Originally posted by thinkloud2004:
Atobe will jab at you next...he is so blinkered that he will refuse to accept any figures in his face...but that's just him. A survey done in 2003 showed that only 10% of domestic maids get a day off per week and there is no reason to think that situation has changed. To me, that means 90% of Singaporean employers are abusing their maids. But to Atobe and many Singaporeans, that's not abuse...until it happens to their daughters.
[color=red]Oxford Mushroom has brought up a very valid issue. Anybody with a heart should support his call for a change in maid hiring polcies.
However, his noble intention is somehow deviated and diluted, at times
reduced (sadly) to a mindless exchange of spiteful jibes.
How many maids are living like hell in this successful first world country of ours? Nobody knows. [b]But we can safely say the majority of them are suffering, albeit to different extent. [/b]
Legislation is unlikely to come about if the majority of Singaporeans think like Atobe, which unfortunately, might well be true. There is certainly no push in the media for the government to amend the legislation to protect foreign domestic workers. -
Originally posted by oxford mushroom:
Can you sound a little more logical if you are attempting to be a convincingly clever mushroom with a PhD ?
Atobe will jab at you next...he is so blinkered that he will refuse to accept any figures in his face...but that's just him. A survey done in 2003 showed that only 10% of domestic maids get a day off per week and there is no reason to think that situation has changed. To me, that means 90% of Singaporean employers are abusing their maids. But to Atobe and many Singaporeans, that's not abuse...until it happens to their daughters.
Legislation is unlikely to come about if the majority of Singaporeans think like Atobe, which unfortunately, might well be true. There is certainly no push in the media for the government to amend the legislation to protect foreign domestic workers.
What figures have you offered that will substantiate your absurd claim that the "MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS" ?
So far from the last count it was 147 cases PLUS another dubious 42 cases that could have been already included in the 147, and another 2 more cases that you searched so desparately for over the last 48 hours.
It takes a stretch of anyone's imagination to agree with your statement that the "MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS" - which unfortunately only an inflated fungi from Oxford seems to be the only one capable of stretching its wild imagination to make such a bloated statement.
Can we count on your PhD qualification for your absurd mathematical brilliance emanating from an atrophied fungi mind ?
From the data posted over the last four days, it was shown that there are only 150,000 maids employed by a population of 4.5 MILLION in Singapore - which included foreigners.
Now you are offering a dubious 2003 research that 10 per cent of maids are not getting their day off.
This 10 per cent will only amount to 15,000 maids out of the 150,000 maids employed.
How does your brilliant fungi mind work that will also hold the remaining 135,000 employers responsible for the 10 per cent of the maids not having their day off ?
Is it any wonder that with your numerical brilliance of ONE, you will also hold the remaining 4.5 MILLION SINGAPOREAN - who do not employ maids - to be included into your exaggerated statement that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' ?
Am I blinkered and refusing to accept the numbers, or are you simply flawed in character despite your supposed professional qualification - now that you have been exposed for your fraudulent and inflated ability to debate in any sensible manner ?
The facts are clear that you have made a slanderous statement that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS ARE MAID ABUSERS' - and your insistence with your flawed mathematical approach to also extend the responsibility to all Singaporeans reveals your effort to malign the good name of all Singaporean in general.
The fact that you dare claim to be NOT even a Singaporean - but a Resident Expatriate living in Singapore - shows your undisguised and contemptuous insolence towards this Singaporean Community, which have extended our hospitality and security to your general well being.
You are nothing more than an uneducated ingrate despite your boasted PhD Qualification.
Why should you be concerned for our Singaporean daughters, when your priority are already with those maids whom your heart bleed more for ?
By your standards, you will have your maid invite her lover into your home, and have the tryst of her life time in front of your daughters - while you are oblivious to her betrayal of your trust.
By your inhuman sense of altruism - you are a fungi afterall - you will probably concentrate at work thinking of your next telephone conversations with your "maid friends" when night falls, and planning your surreptitious intrusion into someone else's home to enjoy your own verbal trysts with the maids employed by others.
There are more then enough laws - civil and criminal - to handle any maid abuse cases - and do your think that this Government will take the opinions of Singaporeans seriously WHEN the Government decide to move one step further than Singaporeans would want ?
It is fortunate that Singaporean Society has the sense of mass revulsion towards abuses by those in power, do you think that the 'MAJORITY OF SINGAPOREANS are incapable of any sense of revulsion towards those who are abused - whether foreign maids or otherwise ?
Do you seriously believe that as EXPATRIATES, you are the only one with charitable bleeding hearts and high moral standards ? -
Threat of repatriation puts maids in a lose-lose situation
I REFER to Ms Laura Thornton-Olivry's letter, 'Why maids had to beg for food' (ST, March 30).
Her neighbour 'had gone through three maids in six months' denying them food, days off and their passports. When they quit, the employers refused to 'release them' for others to employ, compelling their repatriation. The current maid suffers ditto, working 19-plus hours daily and fearing abuse for talking to outsiders.
In the follow-up report, 'So hungry, some maids beg neighbours for food' (ST, March 31), the Ministry of Manpower gave the assurance that errant employers will be prosecuted and that maids 'need not fear reprisal'. But vindictive employers can still add insult to injury by repatriating the maids.
Even if all maids were exit-interviewed to investigate cruelty, compensate victims and deny offenders future employment, employer prerogative to repatriate remains a threat. Hence the impunity of 'maid slavery'.
A support group for Indonesian maids found that 25 of 45 complaints last month were about food deprivation. One employer charged her maid $2 for a packet of instant noodles. A researcher reveals that some employers forget to provide enough food while others deny nutrition 'to show that they are lower in status'. I worry for their pets.
Anthony Lee Mui Yu
Apr 3, Straits Times -
A flurry of letters in the Straits Times in support of better working conditions for domestic maids. Fortunately, not all Singaporeans are blind and racists. Unfortunately, they are few in number:
Give employers who mistreat maids a taste of their own medicine
I READ with horror the recent reports in The Straits Times about the plight of maids here.
Employers who beat and starve their maids and even order their pets to attack them - it actually defies belief that a supposed civilised society, a supposed First World country like Singapore, has citizens who continually abuse the people they employ as maids.
These reports are only two in a long series of incidents that I have read about for years now, about the way in which Singaporeans treat foreign maids.
Enough is enough. It appears as though we are no better than the slave owners of the old American South.
In fact, I would bet that if slavery were made legal here, a large number of Singaporeans would revel in the fact that they wouldn't have to even pay their maids and delight in the fact that they could deny them every right that must be afforded to people of a civilised society.
After all, 'They are not like us' seems to be the attitude of employers here. Indeed, 'they' don't behave like us.
On a recent trip to Manila, I was delighted at the excellent customer service provided by every single person I encountered - from the staff at the hotel I stayed at to the shop assistants at the malls I visited. Far better, I should add, than the service that I usually receive in Singapore.
It seems that the penalties for maid abuse - fines and short jail sentences - are insufficient to deter employers from continuing to abuse the employees under their care. Perhaps penalties should give them a taste of their own medicine.
Until we learn to behave like civilised human beings, we will continue to be a First World economy populated by Fourth World citizens.
Brian Joseph Lawrence
Straits Times 3 Apr