bobjots : redux

Here are some accounts and true stories of human trafficking that occur in Malaysia and other parts of the world. Mind you, The Truth Isn’t Sexy :

Ellen was abducted from Albania and sold to a brothel where she was forced to have sex with up to forty men a day. She was beaten, raped and threatened with death if she tried to refuse. Ellen was 15.

I was employed as a domestic worker but was forced to work in a factory. If we do not produce the targets we were punished. 19 of us shared 1 bathroom, we were confined indoors, with no fresh air. All the windows were sealed with plywood, we couldn’t see the sun. Work hours were long, we do not get paid. It felt like prison. I could not take it anymore, I tried to cut my wrist and swallow insect repellant. – R. from Indonesia

My mother is blind, our family is very poor, I need to support them. I trusted my neighbour who told me I could earn RM 100 an hour in Malaysia. On arrival I was forced to work in a Karaoke, to have sex with customers. I protested but to no avail, my boss told me if I slept with 200 men he would release me. – S.N. (aged 17) from Cambodia

My eldest sister promised me a job in her shop in Malaysia. On arrival she sold me for RM6000 to a man. I was only 17 years old, I cried and pleaded, she told me to shut my eyes and just endure the pain. After this I was forced to do sex-work in a karaoke. – S.P. (aged 17 – passport age 19) from Cambodia

I was cheated when I went to England to work. I was forced to work as a prostitute. I am so ashamed, I do not want my family to know. I just want to forget it all, I do not want to talk about it. – P.Y. (aged 20) from Malaysia

My employer told me my father & mother has died in Indonesia, my sister had a stroke and died. I was not allowed any calls, so I could not confirm, I believed her, so I got very depressed and wanted to kill myself, I almost jumped down from the apartment. – .A. (age 20) from Indonesia – note : her body was covered with lacerations when she was rescued.

I sold my house and my land in Bangladesh so that I could pay the TK 200,000 fee (about RM 10,000) to the agent to bring me to Malaysia to work. My family and my aged parents are now living under a tarpaulin tent but they believe the sacrifice is worth it so that I can bring money home and change all our lives. When I arrived in Malaysia, my passport was confiscated and I was made to stay in a “hostel” with 45 other Bangladeshis. We have no jobs and very little food and the agent only comes and gets us when there’s a need for short term workers. I am so ashamed to face my family now. – A.H. (age 27) from Bangladesh

See Also

• 21st Century Slavery in Malaysia (1)
  - Background Information
• 21st Century Slavery in Malaysia (2)
  - The Malaysian Scene
• 21st Century Slavery in Malaysia (4)
  - What We Can Do