Filipino domestic helper, HK employer charged for running illegal guesthouse

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A Filipino domestic helper and her employer in Hong Kong are facing illegal employment charges before the Eastern Magistrates Courts in Sai Wan Ho for running an illegal guesthouse.

The domestic helper, identified as Pamela S., was charged with two counts of breach of condition, and a count of managing an unlicensed guesthouse, as per Hong Kong News on Jan. 17. Pamela had been caught twice managing the said guesthouse, but her male employer denied this.

Eastern Principal Magistrate Peter Law was found reprimanding Pamela’s employer when they showed up side by side during the plea hearing on Jan. 7.

“Do not look at [Pamela] like that! It will create some pressure on her,” Judge Law was quoted as saying.

Her employer has since pleaded not guilty to the charges, whereas Pamela requested for more time to consider her plea, according to the report. The case was adjourned to March 4 to give Pamela ample time to prepare.

Filipino domestic helpers in Hong Kong have had their share of brushings with the legal system as of late.

Forty-six-year-old Marivic P.M. was fined HK$300 (around P2,000) last Jan. 23 for “pedestrian negligence” after getting hit by a bus last April 2018. Marivic was found at fault after she attempted to cross the street while the green light for pedestrians was blinking. Eastern deputy magistrate Selma Manhood, citing the Road Users Code, told Marivic she should have stopped and waited on the pavement while the green light was blinking.

Meanwhile, 36-year-old Melody C.F. was sentenced to a week in jail after pleading guilty to theft last Jan. 21. Melody stole HK$100 (around $12.75 or P672) from her employer on Sept. 19, 2018 — a crime she immediately admitted to the police. It was also Judge Law who sentenced Melody. Cody Cepeda/JB

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