Maid beaten and scalded for making 'thin' porridge

2009/03/16

The New Straits Times

By : Syed Umar Ariff

Indonesian maid Siami suffered cuts and bruises and is now warded at Segamat Hospital.

SEGAMAT: The cereal porridge she made was too thin.

While most people would shrug it off as a trivial matter, it was obviously reason enough for a maid to be struck with a rotan, scalded with hot water, punched and kicked by her employer in Taman Segar here on Saturday.

The maid, known only as Siami from East Java, said her female employer was furious that the porridge she made was too thin. Siami, 27, alleged she was then assaulted.

She said she ran away to seek help from a neighbour, but was forced to return home by her employer. The neighbour then alerted the police.

A police patrol car went to the house and Siami was taken to a police station to lodge a report. She is now warded at Segamat Hospital.
Siami, who started working in the country five months ago, suffered bruises and cuts on the face, legs and other parts of the body. Her right arm is broken.

Siami claimed she was constantly beaten for small mistakes and the latest incident was over a bowl of porridge she made which was not to her employer's liking.

"I couldn't stand the abuse so I ran to a neighbour's house but my employer forced me to go back to the house."

Segamat district deputy police chief Deputy Superintendent Ahmad Sukarno Ahmad Zahari said a statement had been taken from the maid's employer. She was released on police bail.