Futile exercise to help maids

Apparently, the Maid Police will be coming round in less than 10 days to conduct "friendly" visits at random homes and see if the Indonesian maids look fine and dandy, or whether they wear an "abused" look and sport bruises and burns all over their bodies. The way I imagine how such a visit will actually operate is like this:

Officer: Selamat pagi, puan. Saya pegawai Boh-Doh dari Jabatan Sumber Manusia. Boleh masuk sebentar tak? Hanya nak tengok kalau orang gaji puan okey ke tak okey.

Abusive employer (smiling): Boleh boleh! Sila masuk! Boleh minum teh, borak sikit. Saya memang tak buat apa-apa kat orang gaji saya. Boleh tanya dia sendiri! (shouts to maid) OI MARMI!!! Cepat buat teh untuk pegawai ini! Jangan jadi malas, nanti saya hentam kau betul-betul! (turns back to Officer) Maaf ya. Kadang-kadang, kena buat marah. Kalau tak, dia memang tak dengar. Tapi, jangan risau. Saya marah sikit saja! Tak pernah saya pukul dia sekali pun!

Maid comes in trembling with a tray of drinks. No obvious marks on her body. Tries to catches the eye of the Officer, but backs down when her employer glances at her menacingly.

Officer: Wah, teh ni bagus, memang kau! Marmi, semua okey tak? Puan engkau ada pukul you tak? Saya pun tak nampak apa-apa kat badan you. Tapi, nampak kecil saja. Puan tak bagi you makan ke? (laughs)

Maid: Dia tak pukul saya. Dia ada bagi saya makan lah.

Officer: Gaji, dia beri tak?

Maid: Puan memang bagi gaji.

Officer: Okey bagus! Rumah ni nampak rumah bagus, rumah kaya. Kau pun macam okey saja. Jangan jadi malas ya? Kalau malas, nanti puan marah kau. Kerja rajin-rajin! Kalau ada apa-apa masalah, ambil paspot, pergi lapor polis. Jangan panggil kita - kita tak ada nombor hotline. Jangan tak ambil paspot, nanti polis tangkap kau kata kau pendatang haram! So, lebih baik, tinggal sini, jadi rajin, dan semua akan jadi okey. Bye!

Of course, if the maid really does sport bruises, it's very probable for the employers to slip some money to the officer to make his teh tarik sweeter. With Malaysia slipping down 9 ranks to the 56th spot in the Transparency International’s 2009 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), this would not be surprising at all. How on earth could rational adults think of such preposterous ideas to eradicate maid abuse in this country?

If indeed abuse was going on, would employers even open their doors to the visiting officer? Can employers be prosecuted for refusing to allow the officers entry? Most likely not. After all, it's not as if they have a warrant to search the house. And even if the officers were allowed to enter the home, did they really think that they could spot maids who look abused? During the visitation period, abusive employers would just dress their maids in long-sleeved clothing, warn them that more torture would await them should they open their mouths, and just wait for the Human Resources Ministry to lose steam and stop the exercise.

What assurance does a maid have that she will be safe should she complain to the visiting officer? Can the officer guarantee her future employment in a safe atmosphere? That her passport will be returned to her? That she will not be deported back to her country of origin? I doubt if the Human Resources Ministry can guarantee these things. Instead of just looking at physical abuse, the Human Resources Ministry should also consider other types of abuse and human rights violations, like sexual abuse, being forced to work without even one off day a week, withholding of passports etc. Such abuses are rampant; though they may not appear as shocking as severe physical abuse and torture, it is those very practices that render maids powerless and keep them mired in hopeless positions.

While the average Malaysian employer may not physically or sexually abuse their maids, not giving them any day off or withholding their passports are common. What is the Human Resources Ministry doing about such human rights violations? And can they ensure that all abused maids have another avenue to seek help, should the officers miss visiting their employers?