WE refer to your article 'Indian maid tells of gross mistreatment' (Sunday Morning Post, May 7). The maid's account made very sorry reading and, what is worse, her case perhaps only represents the tip of an iceberg.
However, we are astounded at the response from some of the 'leaders' of the Indian community. Kishore Sakhrani, of the Indian Resources Group, attempts to justify the practice of underpayment and mistreatment on the grounds that even this low salary is more than maids would earn back in India. What would Sakhrani say if the Hong Kong Government applied the same argument and fixed the salaries of all Indians at a much lower scale than their non-Indian counterparts? Kanta Chugani, of the Kowloon Indian Ladies Association, is surprised the maids have raised such a 'stink' about this, and suggests they approach the Indian Commission if they have problems. She would, perhaps, have not made that remark had she been better informed, particularly of the response of the Indian Commission so far.
These maids leave everything behind to work in a foreign land and earn a better living for their families. They prefer Indian employers because they are often unable to speak any other language and because they hope they would feel more comfortable in an Indian household. But when their employers and countrymen let them down and rampantly exploit them, the maids have every reason to feel aggrieved.
Finally, the Indian Commission's silence on the issue will not make the problem go away.
S.R. DAS and D.A. SUDHAMAN Aberdeen IT WAS sad to read how 'Anita' was stripped of her humanity and had to suffer like a slave. But I was also disgusted by the reaction of Kanta Chugani and Priya Babani.
Kanta Chugani said she did not know why mistreated Indian maids 'are making such a big stink about it'. But wouldn't she make a big stink if her boss dehumanised her and no one did anything about it? Priya Babani suggested Indian maids did not deserve the legal wage, but she is wrong. The legal wage is exactly the amount all maids should receive, regardless of where they come from.