A heavily pregnant woman has been sentenced to eight weeks of jail after she allegedly physically abused her maid.
She received her sentence on Wednesday (5 May) where she was also ordered to pay the victim $3,200 in compensation. Alternatively, she has been allowed to also choose to serve another 16 days in jail.
How And When The Abuse Started
Initial reports suggest that at the time of the offences, Tan Hui Mei was an administrator and lived with her husband and her mother. The couple also have three daughters.
Their domestic helper, a 24-year-old Indonesian woman, began working for the family in November 2018. She worked for $600 a month. Her responsibilities included household chores, cooking and caring for the youngest daughter who was still a toddler back then.
Pregnant Woman Abuses Domestic Helper
Between November 2018 and March 2019, Tan abused the victim multiple times.
It started with Tam forcing the victim to eat a piece of dirty cotton wool on the dining table. Around the same time period, she also made the domestic helper eat hair that was on the toilet floor.
In December 2019, the victim called the police to report the abuse she has experienced. She told the authorities that Tan would slap her a few times when she was unhappy with her work performance. But despite this, the maid continued to work for Tan.
Then one morning on 30 March 2019, the maid bathed and fed Tan's daughter. She then left the toddler in a room with Tan's mother and second daughter.
When the toddler began crying, the domestic helper assumed either the grandmother or sister would tend to her so she did not. But afterwards, Tan confronted the maid and asked why she didn't take care of her daughter. When the victim tried to explain, Tan slapped her on both sides of her face. She also hit the maid's forehead three times causing it to swell.
Even then, the victim did not retaliate and continued to do her household chores.
The following night, Tan called the maid to her room and asked her to massage her aching legs. But while doing so, the domestic helper fell asleep. Tan pinched her forearm and told her not to close her eyes. Despite the pain, the maid continued to massage her.
Woman Jailed For Domestic Helper Abuse In Singapore
The victim told her sister about the incidents that led to her sister calling the Centre for Domestic Employees. The police went to Tan's home while the maid was brought to the hospital for the bruises on her forehead and arm.
For committing domestic helper abuse in Singapore, Tan has pleaded guilty to two charges. These include voluntarily causing hurt to the maid. There are three additional charges that are being considered in her sentencing.
The victim was unemployed for seven months until she found work with a new home in December 2019. Deputy Public Prosecutor Kathy Chu asked Tan to receive at least 12 to 15 weeks' jail as well as a pay a compensation of at least S$3,200. This is to compensate for the physical pain inflicted and victim's loss of earnings.
Mother Admits She Was In The Wrong And Asks For Leniency
Since Tan is a first-time offender, Defence lawyer Genesa Tan asked that her client get no more than six weeks in jail and a smaller compensation order.
The court also heard that the offences were "completely out of character" for Tan as she has been employing domestic helpers for more than 10 years without any problem. One former maid even wrote a testimonial about her good treatment.
The time when the victim made a police report, the police said that it was "unfounded." After this, Tan made more effort to make the maid feel more at home. Tan's lawyer said she is unable to explain her abusive actions except that they were impulsive and that he is remorseful.
Tan asked to speak to the judge directly to acknowledge her wrong-doing. As she was in her last trimester of pregnancy with three other daughters and a mother to take care of, Tan asked for leniency.
The judge said committing domestic help abuse usually involves a sentence of jail terms unless there are exceptional circumstances. In this case, there were none.
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