Tales from the heart of darkness.These are horror stories of abusive employers mostly in West Malaysia that physically abused their maids bringing shame to the nation.
She [the employer's wife] then threw boiling water on me... She took the iron out of my hand and pressed it against my breasts 
Nirmala Bonat
Treating maids like slaves,using physical force and not paying salaries have become commonplace causing big embarrassment to the country and reflecting the uncivilised and appalling manner of some Malaysian employer.There are just too many cases to make it exception to the rules, it has become the rule. Another new case was reported here. More shameless act here.
Physical abuse from Chinese employers and payment problems from Malay employers. Bad publicity for the country.Things have gone so bad that the Indonesian government have to ban Indonesian maids from going to Malaysia to work.
Singapore government have dealt with the problem more effectively than Malaysia.Severe punishment including long prison sentence for those who physically abused their maids had put a stop to this disgraceful act.
I was shocked when I read about Indonesian maids in West Malaysia were not given weekly day offs and our government not putting its foot down on the matter instead preferring to listen to crap excuses from employers that maids if given day-off would cause social problems.The biggest shock came from an interview some years ago with former Home Minister Radzi Sheikh Ahmad who said Indonesia maids should not be given day-off. Excuse, just too many of them around.Social problem? Idiot!
Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan where life is a bigger rat race and people working much harder than their West Malaysians counterparts, Sundays are compulsory day-off for maids.The practice in West Malaysia is shocking and shameful act of a civilised nation.In Sabah our maids can take off every Sundays.
For that matter Sabahans and Sarawakians appears more humane and civilised, maid abuse is unheard of in the two states.As far back as I can stretch my memory there have not been any case of maid abuse in Sabah or Sarawak reported in the media.
The Malaysian government should stop dragging its feet and address the problems before majority of Malaysians become abominable slave masters.Laws should be passed to protect these poor souls and severely punish the perpetrator.
Read what one moron has to say about giving maid a day-off here.
"It would only lead to more problems as the maids would have more time to cavort with their boyfriends," said former Customs Officers Association (Perbekas) president Datuk Abdul Rahman Manan.
"As it is, employers constantly have to worry if their maids are going to run off with their belongings while they are at work or worse," he said after handing over a memorandum protesting the proposal to the deputy prime minister's special officer Feris Omar.
We just think they should not be left to roam around on their own," he said.
Any right-minded person wouldn't dare make such stupid and outrageous statement.Wonder where this 'orang utan' came from.Utter disgrace.If your maid is not good, sack her, moron! If it is not within your means, you have no right to employ a maid and you have no right to keep her in bondage just because you have paid some rotten employment agency a fee to get her.If the maid steals from you there are laws in this country to take care of that.
Thank goodness this swine fever does not exist where I came from. We treat our maids as human.We even treat our animals as humans.
9 comments:
There are some 300,000 foreign maids in M'sia.
Say, the number of cases of maid abuse is 100 per year. That is 1/3 of 1% of maids.
Hardly something to get our knickers in a twist is it, to the extent of Indonesia banning maid entry to M'sia?
In actual fact, I cannot recall even 10 cases of abuse reported over the last year. So,let's view things in proper perspective.
This is not to condone such cases. Those employers caught and convicted should be punished severely. There is no excuse whatsoever for any human being to abuse another like that.
The authorities should focus more on the across the board increase in crime throughout M'sia and not sensationalise matters out of proportion!
Look at bright side ... 300,000 maid X RM400 = 120 mil per month X 12 month = RM 1.44 billion a year. This is how much Malaysia will save ... Do we really need an Indonesian maid ... Without these maids child care business will booming & money is kept within Malaysia ... & Less argument with our Neighbor
donplaypuks,
I find it disgusting and find it deplorable that your are trying to justify this uncivilised act by numbers.
Even 10 cases is good enough to reflect the barbaric act.It's showing an example of our primitive minds in dealing with human's folly.No other countries that import maids from overseas have shown that many cases of maid abuse.What's that tell you about Malaysians.
They make mistakes, just because they are poor,defenceless and helpless bash them up.Because they are your slaves, no-day off for them.
This is the 21st century , mate , not the Dark Ages.
The name Melayu is an Indian word to denote hills or mountain range. There is a place in South India called Melayur.
Indigenous people who marry Muslim Indians from Melayur identified themselves as Melayur.
Over time, as the Malay kingdom spead through insular SEA, the word Melayur became simply as Melayu.
If one were to do genetic test on the modern Malay in Peninsula Malaysia, they would invariably carry genetics from Indian to explain the darker complexion and kinky hair of most Malays as opposed to the Mongolid look of some Malays of original Malayo Polynesian, Dusun or Dayak stocks.
The real natives or indigenous people of the Peninsula Malaysia can be found in the Northern parts of Peninusla Malaysia apart from the aborigines.
Sometimes, your experiences will mould you to act a certain way.
I do not condone abuse on maids or any human being for that matter. But you cannot simply lump off-day together with abuse.
Most people who oppose to the weekly off-day have experienced or know of cases where Indonesian maids go missing. Have you asked why is it that people do not protest for day off to Philippino maids? From experience and the syndication of maid agencies etc. You lose your maid, you will bear the cost of getting a new one. Agencies will earn new fees. The qualification of maid we get here in West Malaysia I can safely say received the least. They may be hardworking without distractions, but when you try to be too nice to them, you will be sorry! They have no attachments what so ever. I have seen many-many cases here.
Maybe the way maids were hired in East Malaysia is different where most are from across the border and maybe they even obtained better education than those being scouted for West Malaysia.
HL, don't simply generalize the matter. The whole maid handling or foreign worker handling by our government is a failure. Singapore are way more advanced because they use lots of brain power in their think tank to develop policies. In Malaysia, semua boleh, apa tak boleh? Furthermore we have big time BN supporter like HL and Eddy who blindly support all that the BN government do. When you have such quality troopers, who need brains?
Anonymous,
If you pay peanut you get monkeys is never far from the truth.You pay Indonesians RM250 and pay the Filipinas RM700-RM1000.What yardstick are you West Malaysians using to gauge human misery.
Your are paying Indonesians low because they are of low quality and you should expect the same output.
Those who abused their maids are cheapskates wanting premium service for their money.You should learn from the Westerners, if you can't afford it, don't do it.
In the West unless you are filthy rich, nobody can afford a servant and yet they survive very well.
The other solution is since they are of bad quality and unreliable the right thing to do is not to employ Indonesians and look for maids from other areas.Since Filipinas are better the government should encourage Malaysians to engage more maids from that area.
Not giving day-off to maids irrespective of where they come from is against decent human behaviour, sinful and against international convention on human rights.
No wonder Malaysia ranked high on human trafficking and abuses which I previously refused to believe and think the American trying to sabotage us.
Now, I am beginning to get a clearer picture why the American placed Malaysia in that horrible grouping.
Yours "In Malaysia, semua boleh, apa tak boleh? Furthermore we have big time BN supporter like HL and Eddy who blindly support all that the BN government do. When you have such quality troopers, who need brains?" is completely irrelevant to the subject.
You guys can't resist bashing the BN without rhyme or reason, isn't it?
Ha ha ... Looks like caught HL talking from behind again. Paying peanuts and mandatory day off is completely different issue.
When many people have the same experience and arrive at the conclusion, you think it is abusive mentality of West Malaysians? Or is it some smart alek talking without knowing the real situation? Not all cases are the same just as I would not dispute how you should treat your Indonesian maid in East Malaysia if that works for most.
You have all races coming out against day off, even you have model employers doing the same. We are not talking about some chinaman family only but even Wanita UMNO elite as well coming out to talk against the ruling. The many negative aspects of allowing day-off grossly outweighs the positive here. The rule seem to be one-sided. Who look after the interest of party who pays the bill? I guess you will never know and judging from your know-it-all attitude, you will never know.
Speaking of Philippino maids or non-Indonesian maids, do you know the minimum requirements before you are allowed to hire? So don't behave like the infamous Marie Antoinette and her "Let them eat cake..." argument. It is people's choice. If people hire the more affordable Indonesian maids, you reckon they have to put up with the 'spoilt goods' deal? We have a way of ensuring we can use the 'spoilt item' but some smart alek come and change the rules without consideration of rakyat's welfare.
Don't talk about welfare of the maids, going by the rules, they agreed to the terms fair and square, for every employer who did not fulfil their part, there are more numbers of the maids not fulfiling their part as well. This has reached an acceptable risk that employers are taking until the ministry blindly put up new policies.
Anyway, the ones who come to Malaysia are those who are mainly rejects from other more lucrative countries. If they can get Middle East or Japan and Korea, why would they want to come to Malaysia? It a fair exchange. The maid knows what they are getting into and not like slave trade that HL like to portray it to be.
Some corrections HL, I was working in Kuching, Sarawak in 2001 and 2002. There was a big case of maid abuse by an Indian employer which causes strain relations bet ween M'sia and Indonesia (in Kalimantan). Fortunately the employer was convicted.
East M'sians treat their Indon maids right? I know from observing the people around me then the pay for I'sian maids are just RM100 - RM150 per month at the time. No day off for most maids too. Some who worked in restaurants are only given shifts off (a few hours), not day off.
I thought people like HL should be more researched and not just shoot without looking at the majority. I can safely say maids are more in numbers in West Malaysia than East Malaysia.
If you can't know the real situation facing the majority of the cases especially interwoven with social scene of metropolitan KL, no point putting a bias piece especially the aim is to whack people you do not agree with. Most West Malaysians and even people like bisu seem to have a wider exposure than your tunnel vision. Which puts us back to the article, what were you trying to express? East Malaysians are superior? I don't think the aim is about condemning abuse as everyone knows that and it is the law. I always sense 'a bit' of inferiority in HL always having to tell people he is actually quite somebody and EM are superior, better in everyway.
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