Malaysian Couple Sentenced to 24 Years in Jail for Starving Maid to Death

mA© Otnaydur / DreamstimeA couple was sentenced to 24 years in jail by the Malaysian court for starving their Cambodian maid to death, one of many such abuse cases straining ties between the country and its neighbors.

Soh Chew Tong, 44, and his wife Chin Chui Ling, 42, were found guilty of culpable homicide at a high court in Penang, said prosecutor Tan Guat Cheng.

The 24-year jail term is to run from the day of their arrest in April last year, shortly after their maid Mey Sichan was found dead by paramedics.

Mey weighed only 26 kilograms (57 pounds) and had bruises on her body. The police said she died from acute gastritis and ulcers, which were most likely cause by lack of food over a long period. The 23-year-old had been working for the family for eight months.

Soh and Chin were initially charged with murder, which carries the death penalty in Malaysia. But their charge was reduced to culpable homicide which only carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in jail, said Tan.

Many cases of ague of domestic workers from Indonesia and Cambodia have frequently surfaced in Malaysia. In response, Cambodia no longer sends its citizens as domestic workers to Malaysia, while Indonesia for years suspended sending maids.

Malaysia has promised to improve their welfare and protection, including giving them a day off. But activists say the hundreds of thousands of women remain vulnerable to sexual abuse, overwork and exploitation.

(Source)