Accusations, swear words and the vortex of debt hit Hong Kong domestic helper
Maid managed to rack up debts of HK$300,000, which she is trying to pay back slowly
It was not one, but a series of events which left domestic helper Ester, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, in severe debt to the tune of almost HK$300,000.
The single mother arrived in Hong Kong 17 years ago on a “fly now, pay later” contract in which signed documents that passed between a loan shark and an employment agency meant she was already in debt when her father and mother fell ill.
She then took out a HK$20,000 loan to pay for health care, while trying to keep her three children in full-time education.
The 57-year-old’s debt problems began to spiral when friends offered to help take out loans for her. “I borrowed from so many companies that I had to reloan,” she said.
“And when I tell my friends about my problems they say they’ll borrow for me. My friends are so good.”
Ester and her employer started receiving abusive phone calls day after day demanding they both pay up last year. Police would not help as they did not consider verbal abuse a criminal offence.
“They are horrible, they use bad words and they accuse me. They say, ‘we will come to your house and find your family in the Philippines’,” Ester said.
“Sometimes I feel unsafe, I feel scared. I have stress. Sometimes I feel that it will be better if I run away. But I can’t do that.”
She has few records of what she owes. The loan sharks who approached her told her to get rid of bills and evidence of their transactions.
On the advice of an NGO, Ester, who earns a monthly salary of HK$7,000, suspended payments to her family and is attempting to pay back her debts slowly.
