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SINGAPORE – The abuse and torture suffered by Myanmar’s domestic worker, Piang Ngaih Don, is appalling and should never have happened, said Human Resources Minister Josephine Teo.
He also urged the community to help look for and report signs of abuse of foreign workers.
Ms. Piang was 24 years old when she died on July 26, 2016. She weighed only 24 kg at the time and had lost 38% of her body weight since she started working here on May 28, 2015.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday night (February 24), the minister expressed her condolences to Ms Piang’s family and said that the government takes the protection of foreign domestic workers (FDW) seriously.
On Tuesday (February 23), her employer in Singapore, Gaiyathiri Murugayan, 40, wife of a police officer Kevin Chelvam, 41, admitted to starving her, torturing her and eventually killing her.
Chelvam, who was a staff sergeant, has been intercepted since August 8, 2016 and faces multiple charges in connection with the abuse and death of Ms. Piang. His case is still in court.
In a statement Wednesday, police said officers are expected to abide by the law and officers who break the law will be treated harshly.
Ms. Teo said that Ms. Piang worked in Singapore for less than a year and had attended the setup program.
She was examined by doctors twice, within six to ten months of her employment, and her employment agency also spoke to her on two separate occasions.
But no signs of her distress were detected on any of these occasions.
“Even though it happened almost five years ago, I can only imagine the anguish her family endured,” Ms. Teo said.
“Ms. Piang’s suffering and death should never have happened. The abuse is abominable, whoever the victims are. When it comes to foreign domestic workers, all the more we have to act.”
A statement released by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Wednesday evening said that in the first six months of Ms Piang’s employment, Chelvam had provided comments to the employment agent (EA) about communication problems and your job performance.
EA offered to replace Ms. Piang several times, but Chelvam did not accept them.
“During this period, the EA had spoken with Ms Piang on two different occasions, but did not respond to any issues,” he said.
MOM added that Chelvam and her family members had previously employed four other foreign domestic workers and that MOM had not received any complaints or adverse comments from them.
The statement also revealed that after Ms Piang’s death, MOM had ensured that a full insurance payment was made to the next of kin, consisting of the full death benefit, the cost of repatriation and a payment of special tip.
The Center for Domestic Employees (CDE) also made a donation to Ms. Piang’s family and facilitated her brother’s visit to Singapore.
MOM said it will step up efforts to communicate with and interview all new foreign domestic workers about their well-being, and also engage healthcare providers to see how it can help them identify cases of possible abuse.
The Humanitarian Organization for the Economics of Migration (Home) said in a statement Wednesday that more must be done to protect foreign domestic workers.
“Horrible, dehumanizing and abhorrent underestimates the abuse that Piang Ngaih Don faced,” he said.
“We mourn Piang’s death. She leaves behind a young son who will grow up without a mother.”
The organization also urged medical professionals who spot migrant and domestic worker patients showing signs of abuse to take proactive steps to report them to authorities, medical social workers or groups that assist migrant workers.
Ms Teo, urging the community to support foreign domestic workers and “do better,” said: “We cannot do it alone. We also ask for your help.
“There is no room for abuse of foreign domestic workers in Singapore. Let’s put an end to this.”
Members of the public who may be aware of the mistreatment of foreign domestic workers, or foreign domestic workers facing employment problems or other problems can contact the CDE or the Foreign Domestic Workers Association for social support and training. (Fast) for help.
FDWs can also call the MOM Helpline at 1800-339-5505 to speak with a MOM officer.
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