An Indonesian maid forced to sleep outside next to a dog has died after suspected abuse by her employer in Malaysia, sparking calls from activists to end poor treatment of migrant workers.
The 21-year-old woman died in a hospital on Sunday, a day after she was rescued from her employer’s home in the northern state of Penang, according to state media.
A 36-year-old woman and her brother are under investigation for suspected murder, police told the state news agency Bernama. The couple were not named as no charges have been filed.
Campaigners said the death of the maid, who had worked in Malaysia for two years, highlighted a lack of protection for migrant workers in the country amid reports of widespread abuse.
Hundreds of thousands of women – mainly from Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar – work in homes throughout Malaysia.
Kuala Lumpur-based rights group Tenaganita said the case is “symptomatic of a widespread and deep-seated malaise”.
“These cases are not isolated in nature,” Tenaganita’s Executive Director Glorene Das said in a statement on Monday.
The woman was rescued from her employer’s home after someone reported her situation to the office of a local parliamentarian.
