Maids Get Masks, Info On Gathering Ban

Foreign domestic helpers out and about on their day off on Sunday on the whole appeared to be complying with the government’s ban on public gatherings of more than four people.

The number of helpers gathered on a footbridge in Mong Kok was noticeably more sparse than normal, with many helpers telling RTHK they’ve heard of the new anti-Covid-19 regulations either through media reports, or directly from their employers.

Most were also wearing face masks, but there were the odd group that numbered more than four.

Some advocacy groups, including the International Migrants Alliance, the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, and the Labour Party, went around the city to hand out information pamphlets, face masks and hand sanitisers to helpers, and to help make sure they weren’t falling afoul of the public gathering restrictions.

Among those helping out was Erwiana Sulistyaningsih — a former domestic worker whose abuse at the hands of her employer shocked the city.

She accused some ‘bad employers’ of exploiting the coronavirus crisis, by overworking their helpers or refusing to let them leave the home.

She urged domestic workers to stand up for themselves, saying they should ask their employers for face masks and hand sanitisers “because it is your right to get this kind of tool [for] protection from the employer.”

“You can ask [to take] your day off”, she added, “and you say to your employer that you can take care of yourself even outside the house.”

Labour Department officials were also handing out pamphlets in busy areas, warning that public gatherings of more than four people are prohibited, and punishable by a HK$25,000 fine and 6 months in jail. Police and immigration department officers were also on patrol.

But Eni Lestari from the International Migrants Alliance says the government should be doing more — like following their example by handing out masks.

“I think it’s important for the Hong Kong government to look after the 400,000 foreign domestic helpers in the city”, she said.

“We are the carers in the house, if we are healthy, the whole family will be healthy. If we are taken care of properly, the whole family will also be grateful to the Hong Kong government.”

She appealed to the government not to leave them behind in this time of crisis, and she called on employers to make sure they provide adequate protection to their helpers.