Two Filipina domestic helpers in Hong Kong reportedly tried to commit suicide, with one managing to kill herself and the other in critical condition in hospital.
According to The Sun, the first case involved an unnamed Filipina in her 50s who was found hanged with a scarf inside her employer’s flat on Kimberley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui on Oct. 18. Initial investigation saod the Filipina has financial problems, an allegation quickly denied by friends and relatives.
Vice Consul Fatima Quintin, head of the Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong’s assistance to nationals section, said her suicide was a puzzle to both her 90-year-old employer and her relatives in the Philippines.
“We’re in contact with her relatives back home and they do not know of any problem that might have driven her to kill herself. The police are still investigating,” Quintin said.
The second case wasn’t much clearer either as the second Filipina to attempt to take her life away, a 49-year-old woman surnamed Baylon, recently arrived in Hong Kong. She jumped from the balcony of her emplyer’s flat in Tai Wai on October 20. As of press time, she remains at critical condition at Prince of Wales Hospital.
Police reports said Baylon was unhappy with her “work situation” but did not give details.
The double tragedy has prompted the Consulate’s social welfare attache, Elizabeth Dy, to call on Filipino helpers going through some difficulty to seek help.
Dy, who visited Baylon at the hospital, said the victim was apparently homesick after she just arrived in Hong Kong. Baylon has a sister in Hong Kong who invited her to come to work, so the social worker found it baffling how she failed to share her problems with her sister.