FOR nearly two years, Adil (not her real name) was forced to clean houses from 5.30am 10pm daily without pay. 

Despite entering the country legally, the Indonesian was locked in a house and only left it when her services were needed. She was an “instant maid” in a cleaning firm where her employer provided after-hour services.

She was one of six Indonesians rescued from two homes in Puchong by an Immigration Department team on April 18.

Today, her employers, a husband and wife, were charged with human trafficking at the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court.

Hii Chee Kee and Lim Yien Sim, both 35, pleaded not guilty to six counts of exploiting Indonesians for forced labour.

Each was granted RM8,000 bail for each charge in one surety. Lim’s father posted the RM96,000 bail for the accused. The court also set June 9 for the next mention.

Malaysia has been tackling human trafficking, especially in cases involving Indonesians and Bangladeshis. The country remains on Tier 2 in the United States watch list on human trafficking, while two Asean countries were upgraded in the ranking. – May 15, 2017.