A 45-year-old woman who confined and physically abused her Filipina domestic helper, has had her jail term tripled to 24 weeks as prosecutors won in an appeal case at Singapore’s High Court last Friday.
At the end of 2011, Jonna Memeje Muegue, now 28, started working for Chua Siew Peng and her 76-year-old mother, Lum Wai Lui, in an apartment at Maplewoods on Bukit Timah Road that belonged to Chua’s younger sister, Kathleen Chua Siew Wei, Lianhe Zaobao reports.
Muegue was physically abused by the Chua sisters and Lum for 11 months and was not allowed to take leave, talk to outsiders or make any phone calls during the period.
On October 29, 2012, Lum punched and slapped Muegue as she ate food that was not meant for her. Lum also slammed the maid’s head against the wall and poured bleach on her, while Chua Siew Peng pulled her hair and slapped her repeatedly.
The following day, Muegue escaped the apartment by climbing out of a window but fractured her feet when she landed on a roof one floor below, The Straits Times reports.
In February 2016, Lum was given 21 months’ probation, instead of imprisonment, as she was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
In May of last year, Chua Siew Peng was jailed for eight weeks after she was found guilty on one count of wrongful confinement and one count of causing hurt to the maid. Both Chua and the prosecutor appealed to the High Court.
On Friday, Justice Chan Seng Onn dismissed Chua’s appeal and allowed the prosecution’s appeal.
Why only 24 mos? They should have tripled it to 33 mos with NO VISITATION RIGHTS! NO PHONE CALL! AND SLAMMED THEIR HEADS ON THE WALL TOO! PULL THEIR HAIR & SLAPPED THEIR FACE SO THEY’LL FEEL WHAT THEY HAVE BEEN DOING TO THEIR MAID! S H A M E ON THEM!!!
Zahra Azeez if the embassy care maybe ther’s alot of employers have gone to jail.what should they do is check randomly on the employers house and to check on the helpers situation too. Just saying.
Rhoda Fe ang ibig Sbihin ni ron,ung amo nya girl ngsabi n gnun dw lgi ang cnsabi ng mga amo Singaporean,pro hnd nmn true ill cla.
Ron Admiran i dont understand what u said….
all employer that torture their helper seems to have mental illness,they should not be allowed to hire any helper i stead bring these mentally ill employers to mental hospital,…!!!
epal nmn to pati presidente dnamay mo na, bugok ang utak mo!!!
Why there is no such regulation as who can or can not allow to hire a helper..if many of the case point out that those employer not mentally fit.. Do they wait for those victim to increase in order to make them aware
if i wer that maid i ask permit to the lawyer that iwill not put.to jail the.employer and the sisters but i will do what they.did to the.maid.put to jail in 3 weeks is not enough punishment to those bastard employer.they deserve the same thing they did to their maid.they are evil.
The maid agencies really need to take responsibility of the maids they bring into the country. They must check on the maids on regular basis, to see if they are humanely treated. Not just some legal people smugglers, that just take their money, than dumped them at their employers and wash their hands!
Most of the singaporean employer are like that!bad behavior!
Unfair justice.