Abused maid stays on in S'pore

Abused maid stays on in S'pore

SINGAPORE (AFP): A Filipino maid whose Singaporean employers
were fined and jailed for abusing her is staying on in the city-
state despite her harrowing experience, The Straits Times
reported yesterday.

"I'm happy this is over. I just want to work and earn money
for my family back home," Lilybeth Aguillon, 20, told the
newspaper.

Aguillon's employers, Ng Guan Lam and his wife Chan Ngan Heng,
were given prison terms of six months and one week respectively
by a judge last Tuesday for subjecting her to physical abuse,
including beatings with a cane.

The maid tried to run away in August after being flogged and
was spotted by a resident who called in the police. The police
took her to a hospital where doctors found multiple bruises on
her arms, legs and buttocks.

Aguillon, who has found a new job with an elderly couple, said
she was trying to put the memories behind her. More than 60,000
Filipinos work in Singapore as domestic helpers.