ID :
66343
Thu, 06/18/2009 - 08:38
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/66343
The shortlink copeid
MAIDS CAN USE OFF DAY TO SETTLE PERSONAL MATTERS - INDONESIAN EMBASSY
KUALA LUMPUR, June 18 (Bernama) -- The compulsory one off day every week
proposed for foreign maids will give about 300,000 Indonesian maids working in
Malaysia an opportunity to settle their personal matters.
Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia, Prof Drs Da'i Bachtiar SH said a day off
every week would also enable the maids to share their problems with the embassy
or their fellow countrymen.
"Problems will crop up if employers don't give their maids a break. If the
maids were given a day off, they will be able to meet other people.
"In the case of the abused Indonesian maid, Siti Hajar, for example, she was
badly treated by her abusive employer for almost three years because she did not
have any contact whatsoever with the outside world," he told Bernama at the
Indonesian Embassy here Wednesday.
He was commenting on the Malaysian government's proposal to make it
compulsory for employers by year end, to give a day off every week for their
maids, as announced by the Human Resources Minister Dr S. Subramaniam Tuesday.
Drs Da'i Bachtiar, however, asked that the matter be further clarified
before being implemented.
Meanwhile, he also commended the employers who treated their maids as their
own family members because it had created a harmonious environment for the maids
to work, even for 24 hours a day.
"If the maids' performance are not up to the employers' expectations, they
can always tell the agency or the embassy. Don't just punish or abuse them," he
said.
He also applauded suggestion that a law be drafted to compel maid agencies
to meet up with their clients at least twice a year.
"If there was such a meeting, any problems can be detected earlier," he
said.
The ambassador also thanked the Malaysian government for willing to
cooperate at any time, especially, on issues involving the two countries.
-- BERNAMA