A Saudi man is suspected of torturing his Indonesian maid and withholding her pay, the Jakarta Globe reported today. The 28-year-old maid, Bayi, worked for a member of the Fahad bin Dakil family in al-Ahssa. According to Bayi, she was tortured daily for 13 months while working for her sponsor. When she arrived at the Indonesian embassy in Saudi Arabia, her ears and cheeks showed signs that they had been burned with iron. Her head and limbs were swollen from beatings and she was unable to move her right arm from the abuse she had suffered. She has also been withheld pay for eight months, and only given her salaries for five months and a plane ticket home. The mother of two is currently recovering from her physical injuries, and according to an Indonesian welfare official, she requires psychological treatment as well.
The Indonesian government and the maid's labor agency are demanding the persecution of her employer on torture charges.