HONG KONG-MAID/VERDICT-REAX Hong Kong woman found guilty of abusing Indonesian maid

Record ID: 496332

  • Title: HONG KONG-MAID/VERDICT-REAX Hong Kong woman found guilty of abusing Indonesian maid
  • Date: 10th February 2015
  • Summary: HONG KONG, CHINA (FEBRUARY 10, 2015) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** INDONESIAN MAID ERWIANA SULISTYANINGSIH SURROUNDED BY REPORTERS AFTER VERDICT (SOUNDBITE) (English) INDONESIAN MAID ERWIANA SULISTYANINGSIH, SAYING: "I am very happy, thank you. I'm very happy I won the case. REPORTERS ASKING: why are you so happy? "Because I will get the justice from Hong Kong." DETECTIVE SUPERINTENDENT DAVID CAMERON WALKING OUT OF COURT BUILDING VARIOUS OF SUPPORTERS OUTSIDE (SOUNDBITE) (English) DETECTIVE SUPERINTENDENT DAVID CAMERON, SAYING: "Today a 44-year-old housewife was convicted of a number of charges under the Crimes Ordinance and Offences Against a Person's Ordinance, for the mistreatment of two Indonesian maids. And also under a number of charges under the labour laws to do with the non-payment of salary. Quite a long operation that involved cooperation with the Indonesian police and the Indonesian Consulate General, and various Hong Kong government departments, including the Labour Department. The woman's now been convicted of various very serious offences including grievous bodily harm on one of the maids." BANNER WITH A PICTURE OF SULISTYANINGSIH AND READING (English): "JUSTICE" (SOUNDBITE) (English) DETECTIVE SUPERINTENDENT DAVID CAMERON, SAYING: "And the message should be brought home that, if you live in a society where you're fortunate enough to be able to employ domestic helpers, they are still protected by the law. And even if there are cultural differences or the domestic helpers feel afraid to come forward to the authorities, in Hong Kong they should feel safe and secure their case will be treated properly." SUPPORTERS STANDING SULISTYANINGSIH LEAVING COURT SURROUNDED BY REPORTERS REPORTERS STANDING
  • Embargoed: 25th February 2015 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: China
  • Country: China
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAET4CS72EDIX4K85WPMEAW4N7B
  • Story Text: A Hong Kong mother of two was found guilty on Tuesday (February 10) of abusing her Indonesian domestic helper in a landmark case that has triggered outrage over the severity of the maltreatment and shed light on abuses many Asian women face in their overseas jobs.
    Former beautician Law Wan-tung, 44, who was wearing a light brown coat, sobbed as the judge remanded her in custody after finding her guilty of 18 of the 20 charges laid against her.
    The charges included grievous bodily harm and violence against Erwiana Sulistyaningsih and two other maids, also from Indonesia.
    She had pleaded not guilty to the 20 charges and earlier admitted one charge of not buying insurance cover for her maid.
    Erwiana, who wore a black T-shirt with the words "Justice" on the front and "End slavery" on the back, joined scores of supporters in clapping before they left the court room.
    "I am very happy, thank you. I'm very happy I won the case. Because I will get the justice from Hong Kong," said Erwiana afterwards with a smile, as several dozen supporters thronged around her with large banners demanding an end to slavery.
    The case led thousands of domestic helpers to take to the streets of Hong Kong in protest last year.
    The court had heard how Erwiana was beaten and denied food and also had her passport confiscated. Law was also accused of failing to pay wages and not allowing Erwiana days off. Law had threatened to kill her domestic helpers' relatives if they disclosed the abuse, the court had heard.
    Judge Amanda Woodcock said a psychiatric report on Law had to be take into account before a sentence could be handed down.
    A police investigator involved with the case said Law could face a maximum seven years imprisonment for the charges.
    "Today a 44-year-old housewife was convicted of a number of charges under the Crimes Ordinance and Offences Against a Person's Ordinance, for the mistreatment of two Indonesian maids. And also under a number of charges under the labour laws to do with the non-payment of salary. Quite a long operation that involved cooperation with the Indonesian police and the Indonesian Consulate General, and various Hong Kong government departments, including the Labour Department. The woman's now been convicted of various very serious offences including grievous bodily harm on one of the maids," said detective superintendent David Cameron.
    "And the message should be brought home that, if you live in a society where you're fortunate enough to be able to employ domestic helpers, they are still protected by the law. And even if there are cultural differences or the domestic helpers feel afraid to come forward to the authorities, in Hong Kong they should feel safe and secure their case will be treated properly," he added.
    Erwiana, who arrived in Hong Kong in 2013, returned to Indonesia in January last year where doctors said burns on her body were caused by boiling water.
    Photographs of a battered Erwiana posted online sparked outrage and Indonesia's then president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, described her treatment as torture.
    While cases of such harsh treatment are rare in the former British colony, Hong Kong's policies on migrant workers have often made domestic helpers reluctant to report abuse for fear of losing their livelihoods and being deported.
    Hong Kong, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997, has about 300,000 foreign domestic helpers, most of them from the Philippines and Indonesia, but also from Nepal, India and Pakistan.
    A Hong Kong couple was jailed in 2013 for torturing, beating and abusing their Indonesian maid, who said they once dressed her in a diaper and tied her to a chair for five days while they went on holiday.
    Time magazine last year named Erwiana as one of its 100 Most Influential People.
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