HONG KONG – A Philippine domestic worker who was sexually abused by her Hong Kong employer will take the city’s police to court over their decision not to classify her as a victim of human trafficking, said her lawyers today.
Activists have long argued that the financial hub’s 370,000 domestic workers – mostly poor women from the Philippines and Indonesia – are acutely vulnerable to various forms of exploitation, including sexual abuse, and have backed calls for a suite of dedicated anti-trafficking laws.
Authorities have rejected those demands, but now face a legal challenge after a rare successful conviction of an employer for sexually abusing a domestic helper.
The woman – referred to in legal documents as “CB” – was hired to work as a helper for Brian Apthorp, a British permanent resident in his 80s.
She alleged that Apthorp routinely sexually assaulted her throughout her employment in 2018 and 2019.
Apthorp was today convicted of two counts of indecent assault against CB, and will be sentenced on July 15.
But, the woman’s lawyers said she feels let down by the response from police and prosecutors, particularly their decision to try Apthorp at the magistrates’ court, which deals with the least serious offences and where prison sentences are capped at shorter lengths.
They have launched a judicial review against both the police commissioner and justice secretary over their handling of the case.
News of the potentially landmark legal challenge comes on the same day Hong Kong’s government hit out at a decision by the United States to keep the city on a human trafficking watch list.
Each year, the State Department assesses countries on whether they are adequately tackling human trafficking.
In its report for 2021, US officials said Hong Kong is still not doing enough to identify trafficking victims and prosecute abusers, keeping it on the “Tier Two” watch list ranking alongside countries such as Belarus, Liberia and Thailand.
“The absence of laws criminalising all forms of trafficking impeded officials’ ability to investigate and charge suspected traffickers,” said the report’s authors.
Hong Kong’s government blasted that assessment in a statement today, describing it as “biased and unreasonable”, and declaring that human trafficking has “never been a prevalent problem” in the city.
In a legal briefing, CB’s lawyers said they plan to argue that Hong Kong needs “bespoke legislation” to counter forced labour.
They also plan to challenge police’s decision not to classify their client as a victim of trafficking or forced labour – an assessment that could have meant Apthorp would have faced more serious charges and a longer sentence.
“Mainland China has an array of legislation specifically criminalising forced labour and human trafficking,” CB’s lawyer Patricia Ho told AFP.
“Hong Kong needs to catch up to that.”
The court will hold its first hearing on September 30 and decide whether to proceed with a full review.
If successful, a judicial review could add pressure on the government to bring in new laws to counter trafficking. – AFP, July 2, 2021
