A daily look at how Hongkongers are dealing with Sars. Today we hear the views of Rima Cunanan, who has worked as a domestic helper in Hong Kong for 12 years.
When the Sars outbreak began, we started working much longer hours. We had to disinfect the whole house every few hours and wipe the doors down after our employers went out. Then we had to stay up and wait for them to come home because we had to wipe the doors and handles after they came in. But they are away on holidays now.
Some employers are taking advantage of their maids by taking away their days off. They say that if they let their maids go out they would go to places with lots of other people, where they could catch Sars. But then why do they still send their maids on errands or to the supermarket? Many maids have not had a single day off in the past month. They are scared of speaking up. We should be able to go out, even if it's just for half a day.
I am lucky because the family I work for has been in the US for two weeks now. They won't be back for another week. But I miss them. When it first started it was really tough. The first Sunday after the outbreak my employers told me I was not allowed to go out. I asked to go for just three hours and promised to take care of myself and take a bath as soon as I got home. They were hesitant but they knew I needed to go, so they let me.
We don't want to get infected ourselves so we take all the possible precautions. I bring hand wash with me all the time and wear plastic gloves when I'm outside. Even though we recently had a $400 pay cut, I bought a bunch of masks so I can change mine every three hours. When I get home I soak my clothes in warm water, put my shoes outside and take a shower right away.
I am worried that when I go back to the Philippines people will treat me like I'm sick or diseased.