Lifting maid ban proving a challenge

A lack of legal protections, insufficient commitment from the Malaysian government and an overworked, understaffed embassy are among the major obstacles to lifting the maid ban, according to an internal government report obtained yesterday. ... Penned by the Ministry of Interior, the 12-page brief details a two-day fact-finding mission undertaken in December. ... The report provides a rare, frank glimpse at the state of affairs in Malaysia, where a moratorium on sending new domestic labourers has been in place since October 2011 amid mounting concerns over rights abuses. During meetings between the delegation – which included officials from the ministries of Labour, Women’s Affairs, and Justice, as well as police and military police – and its Malaysian counterparts, the latter sought to downplay problems, even as Cambodian officials urged reform. Recruiting companies, meanwhile, took a similar line, blaming media and NGOs for offering misleading information. A representative from the Malaysian Association of Employment Agencies told the delegation they have lost approximately $7 million since the moratorium and urged the Cambodian government to lift the ban. ... At a meeting with the Cambodian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, staffers suggested simple protections including bank accounts for workers, regular data from the Ministry of Labour detailing who had arrived, and changes in how recruitment fees were deducted from salaries.

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