Maid into slaves

2010/05/20

MOST Malaysians would be shocked at the idea that slavery is still alive and well in this country in this day and age. Those who can afford to hire live-in maids to mind their children, cook their food, clean their homes, iron their clothes and wash their cars would take great offence at charges that they treat their servants like slaves, when they come willingly, are paid a wage, and are not beaten, burnt, or clapped in chains. In part this is because the word conjures up old images of cotton-picking, market auctions, bull whips and manacles.

But this is not the stuff of modern-day servitude. And neither is it confined to the selling of women and children to brothels. There are many forms of human trafficking -- the term more commonly used to describe human bondage in its contemporary incarnation -- and its defining characteristic is not the ownership of people as chattel to be traded as in the past but the inhumanity of the indignities imposed on another human being.

While maids in this country may not literally be under lock and key, they are virtually in chains as they are not free to come and go -- their passports are in the hands of their employers or somebody else. By any definition, this is slavery, and so are the gruelling hours, with few breaks and no days of rest, which the maids work. This is a gross violation of their rights as workers and a grave affront to their dignity as human beings.

Like it or not, we have to confront the uncomfortable reality that foreign maids may be living in bondage in our homes or next door. We can no longer ignore the exploitation of this underclass of domestic helpers who have been keeping our homes well-run. And as long as there is a darker side to the best of people, we cannot leave their fate to the milk of human kindness.

Fortunately, there is now a letter of intent between Malaysia and Indonesia to let the maids keep their passports and to provide them with days off. The challenge now is to find common ground on the outstanding issues of fair wages and recruiting fees. While it is vital for Malaysia to provide legal protection to maids, it is equally important for Indonesia to exercise more control over the practices of the recruiting agencies and the training they conduct.

Above all, what is required is political will and fresh political direction to navigate the frenetic and fractious cross-border debate on immigration.

Read more: Maid into slaves http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/16leaderab5/Article/#ixzz0oSCaFnjr

Importing maids, exporting talents

Opinion 2010-05-20 13:35

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday (18 May) on the new terms of the maids’ employment, including giving them a day off a week and allowing them to keep their passports.

It is understood that Indonesia has suggested a minimum wage of RM600 for maids but it requires further discussions.

Several high-profile abuse cases have created great discussions over the welfare of Indonesian maids. Also, the Indonesian government has earlier imposed a freeze on sending maids to Malaysia since they are not receiving fair treatment here. On the other hand, cases involving Indonesian maids, including runaways, stealth and abuse of children can also be heard from time to time.

Based on the information, we have some 300,000 legal and illegal Indonesian maids and most of them are responsible for housework and taking care of children, elders and patients. They are actually contributing a lot to our society. Unfortunately, some employers treat them as slaves and as a result, a lot of complaints are made.

It is a fact that Malaysia does not pay high for maids. To be fair, allowing maids, who belong to the vulnerable groups in the society, to enjoy a minimum wage, a day-off a week and a better working environment is just meeting the minimum international labour standards, there should be no controversy at all.

However, some employers are concerned that whether they have neglected the welfare of employers while making an agreement to protect the basic welfare of maids. For example, who should be responsible for the losses if the maid runs away?

Maids run away with various strange reasons, and it is not necessarily because they have been abused or treated unfairly. A friend of mine treated her maids like friends but the first two of her maids ran away with their boyfriends. She got the third maid but found that the maid was suffering from venereal disease and it caused endless worries to her family.

Every time when she applied for a maid, my friend paid the maid advanced salary. Together with agency and visa fees, she had to spend about RM7000 for a maid. She really suffered a great loss as three of the maids were not satisfactory.

In the long run, the memorandum of understanding signed by Malaysian and Indonesia can help us solve the maid dispute. It is a good thing. But the market is realistic. When the welfare and treatment for maids have been improved, their quality must be improved, too. The market may also shift to other countries for cheaper maids.

Another problem that we should think about is, why are we losing millions of talents at the same time when we are importing up to 2 millions of Indonesian labours and maids?

(By LIM MUN FAH/ Translated by SOONG PHUI JEE/ Sin Chew Daily

Employer, Maid Can Still Negotiate Weekly Off Day - Najib

May 20, 2010 14:47 PM
By: Ramjit

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 (Bernama) -- Malaysian employers and their Indonesian maids can still negotiate the requirement for an off day a week and come up with mutually-agreed arrangement, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.He said if both sides agreed, the maids need not take an off day and they would be paid salary in lieu of the off day."If we have concerns, we can still negotiate," he told reporters after opening the ground breaking ceremony of Utusan Melayu (M) Berhad's new headquarters at Jalan Chan Sow Lin, here on Thursday.

Najib said this when asked to comment on concerns that the one-day off for maid could give rise to social problem."There should be a compromise or else how are we going to have the supply of maid?" he said.On Tuesday, Malaysia and Indonesia signed a letter of intent, which requires Malaysian employers to give their Indonesian maids a day off a week and that if the maids agreed not to take the off day, they would be paid salaries instead.

Najib said Malaysian families were increasingly in need of maid especially if the husband and wife were working.Asked whether the setting up of more nurseries could help ease the demand for maid among working couples, Najib said it was likely that these couples would still need the service of a maid.-- BERNAMA