Hong Kong gov’t must share blame, say migrant workers

HONG KONG – Groups protesting the horrific abuse apparently inflicted on Indonesian domestic helper Erwiana Sulistyaningsih by her Hong Kong employer vented their ire on the Hong Kong government on Thursday, January 23.

Members of the Justice for Erwiana and Migrant Domestic Workers Committee staged a rally outside the Labour Department offices in the Central district, and accused the government of enacting policies that expose foreign domestic workers (FDWs) to abuse.

The protest came one day after the female employer, Law Wan-tung, 44, posted bail of HK$500,000 (US$64,500) cash, and surety in the same amount, after being formally charged at the Kwun Tong magistracy.

Law, a housewife, faces 7 charges: one of wounding, 2 of common assault, and 4 of criminal intimidation.

Only two of the charges pertain to her alleged assault of Sulistyaningsih. The 5 others are in relation to her alleged abuse of 2 other maids, which went as far back as April 2010.

She is scheduled to appear in court again on March 25.

At the rally, speakers took Labour Secretary Matthew Cheung to task for not cracking down on employment agencies that charge illegal placement fees, and fail to protect FDWs they recruit from abusive employers. (READ: Tortured maid, migrant workers and Hong Kong)

According to one speaker, Eman Villanueva of United Filipinos in Hong Kong, Sulistyaningsih sought help from her recruiter after escaping from her employer a month into her job but was turned away.

The reason? “It was because she had not yet paid all her placement fees,” said Villanueva.

Earlier reports said Sulistyaningsih paid a total of HK$18,000 (US$2,300) to her recruiter. This was despite Hong Kong’s laws allowing only 10% of the first monthly salary of a worker (about HK$400 or US$50) to be paid to the agency.

According to Villanueva, Hong Kong’s labor officials always say that they cannot do anything about the overcharging because it is done in the Philippines, Indonesia, or any other place where the FDW comes from.

“But this is not true,” he says. “The agencies in Hong Kong are collecting the money here, through 7-Eleven, through money lending agencies…”

Agency’s violations

He also said many agencies cheat both the FDW and the employers by collecting fees from both of them. Even the government is said to be cheated because the agencies do not issue receipts for the fees that they collect, and thus do not pay tax on them as well.

Another speaker, Eni Lestari of the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, hit out at the Labour Department for allowing Sulistyaningsih’s agency to continue operating.

Lestari said the agency violated several laws by collecting illegal fees, confiscating Sulistyaningsih’s passport, and refusing to help her escape her employer’s abuse.

Also among the speakers was Doris Lee of the employers’ group Open Door, who called for an end to the policy that require all employment contracts to be coursed through recruitment agencies.

The protesters also called for an end to the “two-week rule” which provides that FDWs must leave Hong Kong within 14 days of their contract being terminated, and the ban on live-out arrangements.

Both these policies are said to have left FDWs vulnerable to abuse by the employers, and exploitation by the agencies. – ­ Rappler.com