OWWA: Battered Pinay maid in Saudi escapes from employers

A battered and bruised Filipina maid in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia has escaped last week from her employers who have allegedly been abusing her for nearly five months, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) said. In a statement, the OWWA office in Jeddah said the maid from Mindanao, identified only as Sonia, had wounds and bruises all over her body because of the beatings she allegedly received from her employers -- a husband and his wife. In an interview with GMA News Online, Sonia related how her employers reportedly took turns in beating her with a "dos por dos" or a wood with a thickness of two inches by two inches. Sonia said whenever her employers asked her to do something, they would allegedly hit  her with the piece of wood after she finishes a task. She said when she asks them to stop beating her, they would allegedly only tell her "no problem" and would insist that what they were doing was for  her own good. “No problem daw at very good daw ang kanilang ginagawa sa akin pag nagmamaka awa ako na itigil na nila ang pananakit sa akin," Sonia said. She recounted that her employers laughed at her when her head bled once after she was beaten with the piece of wood. At another time, the wife allegedly inserted the piece of wood into her womanhood. Aside from the beatings, Sonia claimed that her employers starved her. Once, she said she was treated like a dog when her employer reportedly threw a piece of rotten hotdog on the floor for her to eat.   Having been given only water for several days, she said she ate the hotdog because she was very hungry. Sonia said she had been working for her employers for 14 months  before she escaped last week. Throughout that time, she alleged that she had not been paid even once although she was reportedly asked to sign a document indicating that she had been receiving her salary. Her employers also allegedly threatened to kill her and send her in a box to the Philippines if she did not sign the document. Sonia said she managed to escape when her employers once left the door open. She rode a taxi to a mall where she sought the help of the Filipinos who were there. Sonia added that she was grateful that the driver did not ask her for payment because she did not have any money with her when she escaped. With the help of her fellow Filipinos, she reported her employers to the police. She was then brought to a hospital where she is now recovering. OWWA officials said they are monitoring Sonia's case. Once she is released from the hospital, Sonia will be housed at the Filipino Workers Resource Center (FWRC) inside the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah. The Philippine officials said proper charges may be filed against her employers once the investigation into the case is finished.   Meanwhile, Consul General Uriel Norman Garibay said they will wait for the result of the investigation of the authorities in Jeddah before giving an official statement. However, Garibay emphasized that they are ready to help maltreated OFWs any time. - with Ronaldo Concha, Andrei Medina, VVP, GMA News