A Maid or a Slave?

Malaysia’s immigration law promotes trafficking in Asia

WASHINGTON, November 29, 2011- Malaysia’s membership in the United Nation Human Rights Council masks its horrific record on workers’ rights. Malaysia has one of the worst policies in the world in terms of its treatment of migrant workers. It leaves them completely in the hands of often abusive employers. But, many Malaysians exploit migrant workers and face no legal consequences for their deeds.


Under Malaysia’s strict immigration law, only employers can obtain work permits for their migrant employees. The terms of the work permit bind migrant workers to work for the employer for multiple years or lose their ability to work. The workers also must surrender their passports to their employers .

The system makes it difficult for migrant workers to leave employment, even if the employer is abusive. To retain legal status in the country, a migrant worker must remain with the employer, regardless of the work conditions. Malyasian law views any changes of employment conditions, including a change of employer, as a violation of the entry condition. If a migrant worker leaves employment for any reason, even due to abuse, the employer can cancel the worker’s work permit. The Malaysian authority immediately categorizes any migrant worker without a permit as an illegal migrant regardless of the exploitive work environment.

Yim Pek Ha, arrested in Maylaysia, for the sadistic torture of her maid Nirmala Bonat Sumbber. Though sentenced to 18 years in prison, Ha has been released on bail.

Reporting an abusive employer to the authority doesn’t necessarily bring the abusive employers to justice, either. One migrant worker said that police arrested and sent her to immigration detention center for confinement when she attempted to report her abusive employer. One migrant said to Amnesty International the following:

I came to Malaysia to work as a maid in June 2007. The agent who brought me here made me work in different houses and did not pay me any money. . . . I went to an immigration office to report the agent but was arrested instead.

Another migrant worker toldAmnesty International that police arrested her for reporting her employer who physically abused her and exploited her with labor without payment.

The Malaysian law strictly forbids migrants from staying in the country after the work permit expires. If the worker wants to stay in the country after the visa expiration, the law requires employers to renew the permit within a day or two.

If an employer fails to renew the work permit on time, authorities punish the migrant worker rather than the employer. Authorities consider any migrant worker without a permit, regardless of the reason, illegally in the country. An illegal migrant worker is punished with fine and imprisonment up to five years.

Malaysian law is forgiving towards exploitive employers. According to U.S. Trafficking in Person report, the authority identified a 14 year old domestic worker as a trafficking victim. Though the authority punished the victim for theft, it never prosecuted the employer for using child labor.


Nirmala Bonat, Pek's maid before and after her injuries

Mien* came to Malaysia from Cambodia with a promise of a well paying job. However, when she arrived in Malaysia, she found the conditions significantly different than what the employer originally promised. Mien’s Malaysian employer required her to work 14 hours a day, seven days a week and never paid her for her labor. When Mien confronted her employer, the Malaysian employer slapped her in the face and confined her in a room without food and water as punishment.

Mien is only one of many Cambodian housemaids exploited in Malaysia. Some workers also experience physical, verbal and sexual abuse from employers. The Cambodian embassy in Malaysia reported the deaths of nine Cambodian housemaids in 2011.

Malaysia is one of the fast developing economies in the world. Now, it’s time for the country to show that true development respects the rights of all people, including those of migrants and trafficking victims.

Mien*: pseudonym

Youngbee Dale is a freelance writer, researcher, and human rights advocate. You can reach her at ybdale@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter