Helper tells of whipping pain, scars

Wallis Wang

An Indonesian domestic worker says she was whipped with a fishing rod by a male employer - an experience that put her in hospital and led to her boss being arrested.

Her story and those of others emerged at a press conference by the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body yesterday, when Johannie Tong Hiu-yan, a community relations officer for the Mission for Migrant Workers, said the number of helpers reporting abuse has increased 44 percent last year compared to 2019.

The Indonesian helper Ina, 29, said she had to take care of 75 dogs, eight turtles, birds and eight large aquariums of fish for the couple who hired her.

She also had to clean the man's fishing rods and machine tools at the Tuen Mun home.

But she was only allowed to sleep for five hours - from 4am to 9am - every day.

"When sir was angry or can't find what he was searching for, he would not allow me to sleep throughout the night," Ina said.

"In a week, I was deprived of two nights without sleep on average. If I asked [any questions], he would get angry and hit me. So I just stayed silent and followed his instructions."

Ina said her employer would often hit her, kick her, pull her hair and throw objects at her regardless of whether those things were heavy or sharp, adding that he once threw a rat-catching machine at her, injuring the back of her head.

"On June 23 I went to bed at 4am." she said. "Suddenly, sir woke me up at 5am. He was angry at me for not arranging the fishing rods the way he wanted.

" So he used a rod to hit my hands and temple. Then he told me to clean the front yard and kicked my leg.

"I was really in pain and exhausted. I just wanted to work in Hong Kong. But why did my employers treat me inhumanely?"

Ina said she used to have two days off in a month. But since February last year, she was banned from going outside on weekends due to the pandemic and was only allowed to leave the house to buy food or send money back home.

"But my employers had regularly invited their friends and relatives for a house party on Saturday nights until Sunday morning," Ina said.

In her case, police yesterday said they arrested a 47-year-old man on Monday for common assault.

He has been released on bail and the case is being investigated.

Another Indonesian helper Putri, 29, alleged that she was raped in February by her male employer, whose wife then ordered her to undergo an abortion.

In responding to media inquiries, police said they received a report on May 19 and arrested a 44-year-old man in Yuen Long on the same day.

The man has been charged with three counts of indecent assault and a count of rape, and the case was mentioned in Tuen Mun Magistrates' Courts on May 21.

wallis.wang@singtaonewscorp.com