Don't leave your maid at home alone: Police<\/p>\n
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak and Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post,
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The lesson to be learned from a recent string of robberies
\ninvolving maids seems clear: Know who you are employing before
\nleaving them home alone with the silverware.<\/p>\n
The latest incident took place on Sunday when a maid going by
\nthe name Hanifah, 16, ran off with Rp 40 million (US$4,495) in
\ncash and a mobile phone belonging to South Korean national Lee
\nUk-ja, 50, who had hired Hanifah only three days earlier.<\/p>\n
Lee, who works as a chef at a Korean restaurant, had been
\nalone at her rented house in Rawa Barat, South Jakarta, for the
\nlast two weeks after her husband Lee Jung-ki returned to South
\nKorea for business.<\/p>\n
Lee hired Hanifah to help her around the house, but due to
\nlanguage differences knew nothing about her background. The
\npolice are currently checking on Hanifah's address.<\/p>\n
City police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo said a lack of
\nregulations prevented the authorities from maintaining stringent
\ncontrol over maid and nanny supply agencies.<\/p>\n
"Firm regulations would help the public and us assess the
\ncredibility of both the agencies and the workers," he told The
\nJakarta Post on Monday.<\/p>\n
The officer said the police had handled numerous robberies
\nwhere agencies had installed a maid in a household targeted for
\nrobbery.<\/p>\n
Police recently broke up a criminal syndicate that specialized
\nin robberies by dishonest maids.<\/p>\n
Prasetyo advised people who used manpower agencies always to
\nask for the maid's identity card issued by the administration in
\nher hometown, and to check her place of domicile and family
\nbackground, crucial information often not provided by agencies.<\/p>\n
Tien A.R., owner of the manpower agency Jasa Abadi Foundation
\nin Cipulir, South Jakarta, agreed that this kind of screening was
\nessential.<\/p>\n
"We do our best to ensure that we get all of their background
\ninformation, such as who their parents are, where they live and
\nso on," Tien told the Post.<\/p>\n
She said her foundation cooperated with local authorities from
\na job seeker's hometown to gather the information.<\/p>\n
"We prefer those who come from faraway villages rather than
\nthose who hold a Jakarta ID, since the latter tend to falsify
\ntheir addresses and are difficult to trace," Tien said.<\/p>\n
She also suggested people hire maids and nannies from reliable
\nagencies.<\/p>\n
"Don't take your friends' or families' advice for granted. It
\nis always better to do your own checking.<\/p>\n
"It is also recommended that you visit the agency or
\nfoundation to check on their credibility," she said.<\/p>\n
Personal contact is essential to build a mutual confidence
\nbetween employer and worker, she added.<\/p>\n
Tien said the increasing number of manpower agencies and
\nfoundations was the likely cause for the upswing in robbery by
\nmaid, because the increased competition made some agencies less
\ninclined to thoroughly investigate job seekers.<\/p>\n
"I am quite concerned by these cases and to learn that there
\nare unscrupulous maids and nannies roaming the city," she said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dont-leave-your-maid-at-home-alone-police-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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