STOP Case Studies - Branches of Hope

I come from the Phillippines. Through a local recruitment agency, I applied to work in Hong Kong as a migrant domestic worker and arrived the city in late 2017. I was immediately taken to a boarding house by the agency and told to stay there. I finally left on the fifth day, and I thought I could finally start working and earn money. Who knew I would be brought to the airport and boarded a flight to Taiwan instead?

I sensed that something wasn’t right and became anxious. To console me, my employer said that the ticket I was given is for a round trip, and promised that I would return to Hong Kong in ten days. In reality, I was sent to Taiwan to work for my employer’s sister, an arrangement I had no prior knowledge about, lest to say consented to.

In Taiwan, I was ordered to work from 6am to 12am every day with no breaks between, and was forbidden to leave the house at all times, unless it was for taking out the trash. I wasn’t allowed to contact anyone using my phone, and was made to place it in a prominent position in the living room. My new employer also frequently insulted me, and always smacked me in the head.

Was I able to return to Hong Kong ten days later, you ask? That did not happen. I stayed and worked in Taiwan for three months, against my will. I didn’t know what to do, but after much contemplation, and recognizing that my experience was human trafficking, I contacted an NGO for help while my employer was away. Later, when she discovered that I had sought help from others, she immediately purchased a flight ticket to the Philippines, and sent me home.

*All names & identifying information have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. The photo is not of the actual victim.

Indicators of trafficking for labour exploitation:

Deceptive recruitment – employer varied working location and people served unreasonably
Exploitation – excessive working hours around 18 hours; no respect of contract signed and laws i.e. Zoe was sent to Taiwan while she held FDW visa for working in HK
Coercion at destination– verbally and physically abused by legal employer’s sister
Abuse of vulnerability – dependency on exploiters due to lack of knowledge of Taiwan and Hong Kong, economic reasons

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW BEING TRAFFICKED?

Is human trafficking happening in your community? Recognizing potential red flags and knowing the indicators of human trafficking is a key step in identifying more victims and helping them find the assistance they need.

To reach out or report suspected cases of human trafficking in Hong Kong, please visit our get help page

I am a daughter to aged parents, an older sibling to a sister who is still at school, and a single mother to a young son. Like most migrant domestic workers, I left home to work in Hong Kong in order to provide for my loved ones.

I have previously came to Hong Kong and worked for a great employer until I fell sick. When my contract ended, I returned to Sri Lanka to undergo treatment. Once I recovered, I found work again in Hong Kong through an agent. To pay for the expensive agency fee, I used up all my meagre savings.

This time, I was not as lucky. When I arrived in Hong Kong, the agency confiscated my identity documents “for safety reasons”. My new employer made me work long hours – I wake up at 4 every morning, and I stay up till 12:30 to cook late-night snacks for the husband. I was constantly tired from the lack of rest. The wife would also make unreasonable demands – she commanded that I change my clothes because she thought I was acting and dressing “like a princess”; I was also made to care for plants in an outdoor greenhouse, which was not part of my job description.

The most distressful part of all was the verbal abuse. She would insult, scold and mock me incessantly. I often felt anxious and frightened at work, but was not ready to give up this job. I complained to the agency about my work conditions, but they did not care and instead, accused me of being the one at fault. They would never know how much courage it took for me to open up to them. I might’ve looked fine, but deep down I was very scared.

The situation continued until a serious accident happened at work that sent me to the ICU, and I was forced to resign by my employer. After a short break in Sri Lanka, I once again came to Hong Kong to work, and sought help from lawyers to claim damages from the agency and my previous employer. I earnestly hope that my story can promote awareness and help others avoid the ordeal I suffered.

*All names & identifying information have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. The photo is not of the actual victim.

Indicators of trafficking for labour exploitation:

Deceptive recruitment – Sithara was deceived about the nature of the job.
Exploitation – excessive working hours and poor working conditions.
Coercion at destination – her personal documents were confiscated.
Abuse of vulnerability – dependency on exploiters due to economic reasons and family situation.

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW BEING TRAFFICKED?

To reach out or report suspected cases of human trafficking in Hong Kong, please visit our get help page

My husband and I worked day and night to provide for our daughter and elders at home in Sri Lanka. Later, when my husband fell ill, I became our family’s main breadwinner. To keep our finances afloat, I needed to find a long-term job.

I approached an agency and was very quickly matched with an employer in Hong Kong. They demanded payment for a fee of HKD$15,000 up front, which they claimed would cover for my insurance and other miscellaneous fees. After payment, however, I was not given a receipt, and was not even asked to sign my employment contract. It was strange, but to secure the job, I did as I was told.

Upon my arrival in Hong Kong, the agent immediately took away my contract and passport. I finally got to meet my employer four days later, and only then did I learn that in addition to cooking meals for their family, I was also expected to care for my employer’s physically disabled father. When I asked about food arrangement, I was told that in Hong Kong, employers have no obligation to provide food or food stipends to their migrant domestic workers. Since it was my first job in Hong Kong, I did not question my employer’s words, and bought food out of my own pocket.

My work begins at 5 every morning and I rest at 9 at night. The hours may sound reasonable, but the truth is, I had to get up every two hours during the night to help my employer’s father use the bathroom. The fatigue, however, was not my breaking point. What I could not tolerate was the constant sexual harassment committed by my employer’s father. He often demanded sexual favours and would intentionally touch me without consent. Whenever I expressed my refusal, he would hit me with nearby objects. I was left with multiple scars, from my head and neck to my back and limbs. It was a hellish nightmare. But because I needed the money for my daughter’s education and my husband’s medical treatments, I clenched my teeth and tried to endure.

Finally, as the abuse escalated and the torment more unbearable, I ran away. I reported my situation to the police, but regrettably, they did not further investigate. After that, my case was referred to STOP through another NGO. It was then that I realized I was a victim of forced labour. With assistance from STOP and a human rights lawyer, I pursed a case against my former employer to claim damages. Yet, as there is currently no anti-human trafficking law in Hong Kong, it’s a long battle ahead. To this day, I am waiting for justice to be done.

*All names & identifying information have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. The photo is not of the actual victim.

Indicators of trafficking for labour exploitation:

Coercive recruitment – debt bondage by high agency fee; she was deceived about work nature
Exploitation – excessive working hours and no respect of labour laws i.e. no food or food allowance provided by employer
Coercion at destination – Kasuni’s HKID and passport were confiscated; employer’s parents physically abused and sexually harassed her
Abuse of vulnerability – dependency on exploiters due to economic reasons and family situation

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW BEING TRAFFICKED?

To reach out or report suspected cases of human trafficking in Hong Kong, please visit our get help page

I was 19 when I was deceived and trafficked to Hong Kong with 15 other men from the same village in India.

We met Mr B in 2017, who claimed to be a recruitment agent. He painted a beautiful picture of working in Hong Kong and lied about being able to arrange for us ‘asylum visas’. Unknown to us that no such traveling document exists, he said it was a type of working visa, and we believed in him.

Before leaving for Hong Kong, we were asked to pay an agency fee of roughly HK$15,000 each, which supposedly covered the plane ticket, accommodation and work arrangement etc. It was no small amount for many of us, including myself. To facilitate my trip to Hong Kong, I sold my family properties and even borrowed money from loan sharks. We were also coached to tell the Hong Kong Immigration Office that we came to ‘visit relatives’ if we are asked for our reason for visit. Dreaming that we could work in the city and provide a better life for our families, we suspected nothing.

Yet, it soon dawned upon us that we were being trafficked for forced labour. Mr B’s connection in Hong Kong, Mr C, picked us up at the airport. Immediately, he confiscated our passports and claimed that he would “keep the documents in a safe place”. The group was then taken to a tiny village house in Yuen Long. None of us knew where we were and no one dared to disobey Mr C. Hygiene in the house was poor and its size spatially suffocating – all 16 of us slept on the floor, cramped up, sharing a thin mattress.

Some days later, we were assigned to work in a nearby parking lot, taking apart old electronics. We finally struck up the courage and demanded to be paid. Unfortunately, Mr C not only disregarded our request, but accused us of owing him money, because he paid for our ‘extortionate’ traveling expenses.

In the midst of it all, one of us from the group managed to get in touch with a hometown friend who lived in Hong Kong at the time. We were found, led back to safety and introduced to STOP.

*All names & identifying information have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. The photo is not of the actual victim.

Indicators of trafficking for labour exploitation:

Deceptive recruitment –claimed there are job opportunities in Hong Kong but applied for them visitor visas
Abuse of vulnerability – dependency on exploiters due to economic reasons, family situation and lack of knowledge about Hong Kong
Coercion at destination – confiscation of passports, confinement

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW BEING TRAFFICKED?

To reach out or report suspected cases of human trafficking in Hong Kong, please visit our get help page

I grew up in a remote village in the Philippines. When my elderly mother fell ill, because I needed extra income for her medical bills, I began thinking about working overseas. Through a close friend of mine, I was connected with an employment agency in Hong Kong, who charged a training fee of HKD8,000. The amount was more than what I could afford at the time, so I agreed to letting the agency deduct the fee from my monthly salary once I started working. After training, I was excited for the new journey ahead, ready to pave way to a better life, or so I thought…

As soon as I entered my employer’s flat, already I realized that the work conditions were drastically different from what I had agreed upon. The employer also gave my salary to the agency instead of paying me directly. As a result, for two months, I did not receive a single penny.

Thereafter, through the agency, I was introduced to another employer who lived in the New Territories. The conditions there were terrible. At my new place of employment, I was demanded to work from 4am everyday to 2am the next morning. Other than cleaning the employer’s house and garden, I was instructed to clean and take stock of the inventory at their produce store in the wet market, which is actually illegal. Every night, I must wait until the family is done with their meal to be allowed to start preparing my own. By then, it’s usually around 9:30 already. After dinner, I would still have to finish the daily chores until past midnight.

Having persisted for four months, I finally reached my limit and filed a complaint to the agency. They, however, claimed that I still owed them money, and tried to force me to go back. Confused, I explained that the training fee had already been repaid in the first two months when the first employer gave them my salary, which totaled up to HKD 8,000. To my disbelief, the agency said, “You can’t prove that you only owe us 8,000 dollars, could you?” At that point, I knew there’s no hope in expecting any assistance from them. In the end, I successfully escaped after connecting with a local NGO, and was identified as a victim of human trafficking by the International Organization for Migration.

Miles away from home, I came to Hong Kong to work and earn money for my mother’s medical expenses, only to be deceived and exploited. Why should I be treated this way?

*All names & identifying information have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. The photo is not of the actual victim.

Indicators of trafficking for labour exploitation:

Deceptive recruitment – working nature was different from that stated on the contract
Exploitation – long working hours of 17 hours per day; no respect of labour laws and contract signed i.e. employer forced her to work illegally outside residence, no food allowance
Abuse of vulnerability – dependency on exploiters due to economic reasons and family situation
Coercion at destination – debt-bondage by huge training fee

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW BEING TRAFFICKED?

To reach out or report suspected cases of human trafficking in Hong Kong, please visit our get help page