Malaysian in London Maoist group not a ‘slave’, says sister

The Malaysian woman who was one of three allegedly held captive by a Maoist couple in London for 30 years was not “enslaved”, her sister said on Monday after visiting her.

Kamar Mahtum said after returning to Malaysia that her long-lost sister Siti Aishah Abdul Wahab, 69, looked “healthier than me” despite reports of sordid modern-day slavery that have shocked Britain.

“No, she can’t be, she looked so well,” the 73-year-old said when asked during a telephone interview if Siti Aishah had been a slave at the Maoist “collective”.

Kamar, who met with Siti Aishah for 90 minutes after being taken by car to a location six hours from London on Thursday night – she believes it to be around Manchester – said her sister was physically, mentally and emotionally fine.

“She promised to return to Malaysia after the investigations were complete, saying it would take about nine months,” she said from her home in southern Malaysia.

Siti Aishah came to Britain as a high-flying student in around 1968 but turned her back on her family after joining a radical left wing group.

The other women allegedly held by the couple are believed to be the daughter of a second world war code-breaker who also became a communist, and a 30-year-old who has spent her entire life inside the Maoist “collective”.