Too lenient!

Categories: Singapore

The Straits Times reported today [The Straits Times, November 22, 2005] that an employer was fined S$15000 for pimping her maid. She was spared the jail sentence. One of the reasons cited for the 'lenient' sentence is that the maid was a voluntary partner. The maid is currently awaiting repatriation. The fine imposed for this crime is laughable! If you go to Geylang, and if a pimp is caught, why is then a jail sentence added? Aren't the girls under his 'charge' also willing parties?

There are many ways to make a person a willing party. Psycho the poor maid about her poverty, and how she had to earn enough to support her children and the family. Do this on a daily basis and the poor girl would have felt miserable enough to really believe that she needed to earn much more than what (is truly) pittance of pay she is getting working as a maid. Or she may be coerced when the employer put pressure by not giving her time to rest, shortened the sleep time, asking her to do household chores over and over again.......... After all, the maid is staying with the employer and is (always) at the mercy of the employer. There are many ways to coerce a person. With such mental and physical 'torture' how many would not have become a willing party?

I am heartened to hear that a police report was made by the maid agency. This is surely a departure from the what I had heard regarding maid agency as regards to maid treatment. Finally a maid agency had done the right thing - to protect the maid. If more maid agency can treat their maids better and with more respect, then I feel that there will be less maid abuse in Singapore.