Immigrant Housemaids Mistreated

Foreign housemaids in Syria frequently suffer extreme physical abuse from their employers, according to an April 26 report on the pro-government website Syrian News.



The maids, who frequently come from South Asian or North African countries, face violence – often sexual assault – and even murder, according to the website, which noted that the women do not have any legal rights when they arrive in Syria.



Twenty-six-year-old Arsima was killed last December after she sustained serious head injuries from a beating administered by the female head of the household where she worked, according to a government official who asked to remain anonymous.



Twenty suicides have been reported among housemaids in the last three years, and many more go unreported, according to the report.



Damascus-based attorney Nazeh Malof told the website that a hotline was needed for maids who are maltreated.



“Right now, they have no one to tell about their suffering. The government needs to create a support group [which] can assist these women.”