Man arrested, violent wife hiding: Police

Man arrested, violent wife hiding: Police

JAKARTA (JP): Police have detained the husband of a woman who
allegedly assaulted five maids in Kembangan, West Jakarta, city
police spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang said yesterday.

The man, identified only as Kresna, should also be held
responsible for the behavior of his wife, who is now in hiding,
Aritonang claimed.

Kresna was arrested Monday night when he returned home from
work so police could question him about his wife's whereabouts,
he said.

Four of Kresna's five maids -- Yati, Tarsini, Umi and
Nurhikmah -- fled Monday morning from their employer's house in
the Puri Kencana housing estate, Block K8 No. 3, Kembangan, after
allegedly being assaulted by the woman, whose name has not been
released, he said.

The four maids, who had bruises on their faces and bodies,
went directly to the Kembangan Police subprecinct to report the
assault.

A police officer said the maids managed to escape from the
house when their employers were not at home.

The maids alleged that Kresna's wife had frequently beaten
them with her hands or with a broom stick.

"She beat us whenever she was disappointed with our work. She
did not give us time to rest either," the officer quoted the
maids as saying.

The maids told the police that another maid, Umi, had
allegedly suffered a severe eye wound and was sent back to her
hometown in Pekalongan on Sunday night, the officer said.

"Umi was struck in the eye because she did not follow our
employer's instruction about cleaning the house," they alleged.

The maids said that Kresna had never been involved in the
beatings.

Their wages were reduced whenever their work was considered to
fall short of expectations, the women claimed.

They were required to pay Rp 1,000 (less than 30 U.S. cents)
for every mosquito or fly found in the house, the officer quoted
the maids as saying.

The head of security guards in the housing complex, Kusnadi,
told the police that he had twice talked to the woman, asking her
not to beat the maids.

"The maids often told me about their employer's bad
treatment," Kusnadi said. "They didn't dare leave because they
hadn't got their salaries."

Aritonang said Kresna's family had hired the maids from
several companies that supply hired help, including Pancaran Asih
in Jembatan Lima, Central Jakarta, and Setia Bakti in Cijantung,
East Jakarta.

He said the woman's alleged treatment of the maids was
intolerable.

"I don't understand how she could do such things to her
maids."

He promised that the police would find the woman and
investigate the case thoroughly.

The maids had been sent to the Navy Hospital in Kedoya, West
Jakarta, for examination, Aritonang said.

"The results will be used as evidence against the suspect," he
said. (cst)