The battle that some foreign domestic helpers have fought over several years is not over despite Friday's Court of First Instance ruling that they are entitled to apply for permanent residency after residing in Hong Kong for more than seven years.

A couple of social workers told China Daily that it was for the better working environment and the equality of human rights that they are fundamentally fighting in the first place, rather than the right of abode per se.

"With or without the right of abode, the more pressing concern of these domestic helpers remains to be the almost unbearable working conditions, such as low wage, long working hours and having to live with their employers," said Eman C. Villanueva, a spokesman for the Asian Migrants' Coordinating Body, which represents around 10,000 migrant workers from Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand in the city.

Having talked to many domestic helpers, Villanueva said very few of them, though they may be eligible to apply for right of abode, would eventually want to settle permanently in Hong Kong. He conceded some would like to opt for stay if they could find better jobs.

The reason for the conservativeness to change their job, he explained, is the worry over whether they could bear the financial stress of the high cost of living in Hong Kong, in addition to their strong family ties back in their countries.

"It (permanent residency) is not an easy decision to make. When they first left their countries, many felt uprooted," he said.

But that does not necessarily translate to the loss of the right to choose, Villanueva added.

Holly Carlos Allan, manager of the Helpers for Domestic Helpers, which provides counseling services to 80-100 domestic helpers a week, echoed Villanueva, enumerating more extreme mistreatment of the clients she dealt with.

There is also the matter of discrimination to fight with.

"I've sensed a lot of anti-Filipino statements from the Hong Kong people when they're against domestic helpers gaining right of abode. The right is concerned with all domestic helpers; it just so happened that many of them are Filipinos. Those opponents have not realized their underlying sense of discrimination when they're singling out one nationality," said Villanueva.

andrea@chinadailyhk.com

China Daily

(HK Edition 10/01/2011 page1)