Woman jailed 10 weeks for punching, caning Indonesian maid
A female employer who punched and caned her Indonesian maid was on Wednesday (19 December) sentenced to 10 weeks’ jail.
Mow Li San, 40, pleaded guilty to two out of three charges of causing hurt to her 30-year-old maid.
The maid started working for Mow in 2016. Mow’s husband, an engineering assistant, worked the night shift. He would leave home at 4pm and return the next day at 7am. The maid slept in the same bedroom as Mow’s twin children, a boy and a girl, now 11.
On 7 October 2016, the maid was supposed to bring the children for an outing but failed to do so. Mow punched the maid twice on her arm, then gripped her shoulders and shook her angrily. The employer continued to scold her throughout the day, and also threatened to deduct her salary.
On 11 October 2016, at about 11pm, Mow went to her children and maid’s bedroom and woke everyone up. She scolded the twins and the maid for not packing their school bags properly. Mow also punched the maid’s arm twice.
Shortly after, the employer used a cane to hit the maid, who cried out in pain. Mow told the maid not to tell her husband about it.
Later, when Mow tried to cane the twins, the maid blocked her employer.
The next afternoon, the twins told their father about what had happened. He brought them all to see a doctor at a clinic nearby, and then called the police to report the maid abuse.
The maximum penalty for causing hurt is up to two years’ jail and a fine of up to $5,000 per charge. If the crime is committed by the employer of a maid or a member of the employer’s household, the perpetrator is liable to one and a half times the punishment.
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