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Cause of Filipina helper's death still a mystery

Posted on 28 August 2019 No comments
By Vir B. Lumicao

Image may contain: 1 person, standing
Delizo was not known to have suffered from any ailment

The cause of death of Mylin Delizo, the third Filipino domestic worker reported to have died in August, is still a mystery as an autopsy still has to be performed on her, Consulate officers said after meeting her employers on Wednesday, Aug 28.

According to Danny Baldon of the Consulate’s assistance to nationals section, Delizo’s employers said police are still waiting for the helper’s relatives to send a letter requesting for autopsy before they can examine her body.
Baldon and welfare officer Virsie Tamayao of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration met with the employers at the Consulate to shed light on Delizo’s death.

But the meeting with the couple who had employed Delizo for the past seven years failed to reveal any new information.



The employers had reported finding Delizo dead at around 7am on Aug. 19. They said the helper was unresponsive when they tried to wake her up after finding her lying on the living room sofa.

When the employers noticed that she was not breathing anymore they called the police. An ambulance was sent to their house in Lai Chi Kok but the crew, seeing Delizo was already dead, took her remains straight to the public mortuary.

Tamayao said the couple had told OWWA that Delizo’s death was reported to the ATN section by the police.
Delizo’s relatives also said they first learned about her death from the police who found them after calling the last dialed number in her mobile phone. The number belonged to Delizo’s niece in Singapore.

During their meeting, Tamayao said the employers said they were not aware of any health problems of Delizo, nor did they know if she was taking medicines of any kind.

Tamayao said the couple was aware of their financial obligations to their dead helper, including shouldering the cost of repatriating her remains.

Delizo, who was from San Jose City, Nueva Ecija, was first suspected by her employers to have died of cancer, said her nephew Jonathan.

“Kutob lang po ng amo niya (na cancer ang ikinamatay) kasi biglaan daw po ang pagpayat ng Tita ko, medyo naglagas daw po kasi ang buhok niya,” said the nephew, who had been in touch by phone with the employer.

But nobody knows for sure if Delizo had suffered from any health problems. Tamayo said only an autopsy will determine the cause of the helper’s death.

Delizo was the third Filipina domestic worker to have died in Hong Kong within 10 days in August.

On Aug 12, Milagrosa M. Aligaen, 63, who had worked in Hong Kong for 29 years, was found dead on her bed in her employer’s house in Shaukeiwan, apparently due to heatstroke.

On Aug 22, Imelda Bartolome, 50, who worked in Mei Foo, died in hospital of a heart attack. She came from Naguilian, Isabela.

Delizo came to Hong Kong in 1998 and had been supporting her mother, said her nephew. She was married but had no children.

Jonathan said her husband filed a claim for Delizo’s remains at the Department of Foreign Affairs regional office in San Fernando, Pampanga, upon being informed of the maid’s death. 

The family is hoping the remains would be delivered to the family while the nine-day nightly prayers for her are still under way, Jonathan said.
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Pinay maid jailed 16 months for stealing $395k jewelry from employer

Posted on 27 August 2019 No comments
By Vir B. Lumicao  

The value of the jewelry stolen was so big that the case was heard in District Court

A 42-year-old Filipina domestic helper was sent to prison for 16 months today, Aug 27, after she admitted stealing $395,000 worth of jewelry from her employer over a nearly eight-month period last year.

Charity Faith Ramos, married and a mother of three, stood meekly as District Court Judge Clement Lee read out the sentence shortly after she pleaded guilty to theft.
Judge Lee said before sentencing that he would also give weight to the sentimental value of the stolen items in addition to the breach of trust.

“I think the employers are wealthy, they can absorb the monetary loss, but they cannot afford to lose the sentimental value of the stolen jewelry,” he said.
Ramos admitted stealing more than 20 pieces of assorted jewelry pieces that the employer, Yu Por-yen, kept in a locked drawer in the master bedroom of her flat in Homantin, Kowloon. Ramos also took Rmb2,000 belonging to Yu.

The judge asked Yu, who was in the gallery, which items had sentimental value. She replied seven necklaces with pendants were given by her grandmother while the gold ring was a gift from her husband’s grandmother. Six gold bracelets were wedding gifts.

The prosecution said the employer discovered the theft on Dec 19 last year when she checked on her jewelry and realized several pieces were missing. She immediately reported the theft to police.



Officers searched Ramos’ belongings and found 13 pawn coupons from nine pawnshops where she had hocked the items stolen over a period starting May 7 last year.

Only 17 pieces valued a total of $245,000 were retrieved from the pawnshops, but the money that Ramos raised from them was not recovered, the prosecution said.

The stolen jewelry that were not recovered included one diamond ring, two diamond necklaces, one diamond bracelet, six gold rings with gems, a pair of diamond earrings and 7 gold necklaces with pendants.

The defense lawyer said Ramos, who started working for her employer in 2017, admitted the offense during investigation.

She reportedly needed money for the medical treatment of her farmer husband who could not work due to asthma and her 76-year-old mother who was paralyzed.

“I ask the court to consider that the money obtained from the offense was used for the medical treatment of sick members of her family,” the lawyer said.  

The lawyer also said Ramos was remorseful and reiterated this in a letter to the court in which she asked for leniency so she could return to her family.

Judge Lee said Ramos’ financial woes did not justify the offense and could not even be a mitigation.

The judge deducted one month from the prescribed sentence for Ramos’ remorse and clear record, then gave a further one-third discount for her guilty plea.
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Filipina denies stealing cosmetics from employer

Posted on No comments
A Filipina helper has denied stealing $2,644 worth of cosmetics from her employer about a month ago.

The helper denies stealing her employere's make-up
(Amazon photo for illustration only)
The 48-year-old maid, C. Capocao, pleaded not guilty on Aug 27 to a charge of theft before Magistrate Peter Law at West Kowloon Court.
She was accused of stealing three boxes of eye shadow, one blush brush, one foundation primer, one eye cream, one box of powder foundation and one inflatable foot spa from her employer Ng Yee-ping.
The theft allegedly happened on or around Jul 25 in the employer’s flat in Villa Esplanada, Tsing Yi.



A pre-trial review of the case has been set for Sept 24. The prosecution said it will present five witnesses, including Ng, during the trial.

Capocao’s bail was extended until the trial.  -- VBL
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Number of migrant workers remains steady despite protests

Posted on No comments
By Daisy CL Mandap

 More Filipino domestic workers are coming to HK despite the uncertainty over the protests  

Fears that the extradition bill protests could result to many migrant domestic workers losing their jobs appear to be unfounded – at least for now.

Latest figures from Hong Kong Immigration show that the number of foreign domestic helpers has risen steadily, even after the first outbreak of clashes between protesters and the police in early June this year.

At the end of July, a total of 394,869 FDHs were recorded to be in Hong Kong, up by more than 1,500 from the previous month.
Filipinos made up more than half of the total figure, at 216,373. That’s about a third more than the Indonesians, the second most dominant ethnic minority group of FDHs, who numbered 169,134 in the same period.

The latest data also show that the number of Filipino DHs has risen steadily each month, with more than 6,000 new arrivals since December last year.

The steady increase appears to indicate that while many Hong Kong residents have voiced skepticism about their future because of the continuing protests that have at times turned violent, they are still staying put, and keeping their helpers.
The upward trend is also reflected in the number of contracts submitted for processing at the Philippine Overseas Labor Office.

According to Polo’s Officer-in-Charge, Antonio Villafuerte, his office is still processing about 700 contracts per day, but this nearly doubles whenever they close for a holiday, like on Monday, Aug 26.

Image may contain: 34 people, people smiling, people sitting
Around 100 newcomers pack Polo's post-arrival orientation seminar each day

Another way for them to monitor newcomers is through the post-arrival orientations seminars that they conduct on a daily basis for some 100 newly-arrived FDHs each time. Again, this number doubles after each holiday.

But Villafuerte says the Consulate remains vigilant in case the continuing unrest causes a knock-down effect on Filipinos, especially the migrant workers. Many say it is too early to see the effect of the prolonged unrest. 



He himself is paying particular attention to the financial sector, thinking that any economic fallout from the tense situation could lead to many people leaving Hong Kong, and as a consequence, cost Filipinos their jobs.

Meantime, Polo has implemented measures to ensure the safety of newly arrived Filipino workers, like requiring their recruitment agencies to provide them with phone SIM cards even before they fly out of the Philippines.

This, plus the requirement for agencies to supply Polo with 24-hour hotlines, are meant to ensure that there are people on standby in case a worker runs into trouble, especially now that strict security measures are enforced at HK Airport.

Villafuerte says all the more than 500 agencies accredited with Polo have become fully compliant with these new requirements. The ones who did not comply initially, and were warned with a two-day suspension for failing to meet the Aug 15 deadline, reportedly did not see Polo’s advisory immediately as it landed in their “spam” mail.


Foreign Domestic Helpers (FDHs) Population in Hong Kong

As at the end of Month/Year
Philippines
Indonesia
India
Other nationalities
Total number for all nationalities

Dec 2018
210,897
165,907
4,502
4,769
386,075
Jan 2019
213,110
167,480
4,515
4,766
389,871
Feb 2019
214,018
167,623
4,570
4,758
390,969
Mar 2019
214,211
168,060
4,557
4,758
391,586
Apr 2019
214,358
168,377
4,564
4,737
392,036
May 2019
215,586
168,644
4,625
4,732
393,587
Jun 2019
216,052
167,937
4,621
4,734
393,344
Jul 2019
216,375
169,134
4,652
4,708
394,869

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