Maid’s death: Cambodian MP wants answers

Mu Sochua pledges to hound Malaysian authorities to get to the bottom of allegations that a Cambodian maid was beaten to death.

July 28, 2011
Stephanie Sta Maria
Free Malaysia Today

PETALING JAYA: Cambodian opposition MP, Mu Sochua (pix), has promised to badger Malaysian authorities to explain the recent death of a teenage Cambodian maid in Penang.

Choy Phich, 19, was found dead outside the back door of her employer’s house in Butterworth on the morning of July 17.

Police attributed her death to pneumonia but new allegations surfaced earlier this week of Choy Phich being beaten to death by her employer.

In an e-mail to over 400 people – including the Malaysian Embassy, the police and the Cambodian Embassy in Malaysia – a neighbour of Choy Phich claimed that many residents had witnessed Choy Phich being mentally and physically abused.

“She had many times sought help from other maids in the neighbourhood,” said Yip Soon Yew.

“Just a day before her death, she passed a note asking that her uncle in Cambodia be informed if she passed away without a valid reason.

“Rumours have been circulating that the local police officer was bribed to cover up the case as the employer is a wealthy and well-known local businessman,” said Yip.

Choy Phich was brought into Malaysia by recruiting agency, AP TSE & C Cambodian Resources Co.

The agency’s director, Seng Sithichey, however, has insisted that she was 21-years-old and that he had received a medical certificate indicating that she had died from pneumonia.

‘Not an isolated case’

Mu Sochua has promised to find answers to Choy Phich’s death and said that local NGOs have also taken up the case.

“I will take the matter up with Malaysian Embassy in Cambodia and also on the issue of the safety and security of Cambodian workers in Malaysia,” she told Cambodian news blog, Khmerization, yesterday.

Khmerization also noted that the Malaysian police had responded positively to its e-mail alert by promising to take “further action as soon as possible”.

The Human Rights Watch (HRW), meanwhile, pointed out that Choy Phich’s death while unfortunate is not an isolated case in Malaysia.

“On June 5, a 26-year old Indonesian domestic worker died allegedly due to abuse by her employer,” said Jyotsna Poudyal of HRW in an e-mail to FMT.

“Ironically, this case came to light just a few weeks after Malaysia signed a new agreement with Indonesia to increase protection for Indonesian domestic workers.”

While HRW will be following the case closely with its partners in Cambodia and Malaysia, Poudyal called on both governments to go beyond a mere investigation into Choy Phich’s death.

“They should also undertake more systemic changes to prevent similar incidents from taking place in the future,” she said.

“Given the Cambodian government’s increasing emphasis on “exporting” its labour abroad, the government and politicians should be concerned about any potential abuses they are facing.”