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Parti Liyani

Parti Liyani (born 1974) is a former domestic helper from Indonesia who was accused of theft by her Singaporean employer, Liew Mun Leong. In 2019, she was sentenced to 26 months in jail when the District Court found her guilty of four counts of theft. Following a successful appeal, the High Court acquitted Parti Liyani of all charges in September 2020. She was represented by her pro bono lawyer, Anil Balchandani at both trials.

Parti Liyani
Parti Liyani.jpg
Born1974
NationalityIndonesian
OccupationFormer domestic helper
Known forWrongly accused of theft by employer

Background

Parti Liyani has worked in Singapore as a foreign domestic worker since 1996.[1]

Employment at the Liew household (2007 - 2016)

 
Karl Liew and Parti Liyani in 2018. Photo credit to Koh Mui Fong/ TODAY.

From March 2007 to October 2016, Parti Liyani was employed as a domestic helper for the prominent businessman, Liew Mun Leong.[2] According to Parti Liyani, she worked from Monday to Saturday from 5 AM to 11 PM and was paid around S$600 a month in 2016.[3] In the nine years of her service, she reportedly had a “cordial relationship” with her employers[4] despite occasional clashes with the son of the Liew family, Karl.[5]

Unlawful deployment

By law, foreign domestic workers are only meant to work at their formal employer's residence.[6] In Parti Liyani's case, her formal employer was Liew Mun Leong.[2] However, in 2012 and 2013, she had been asked to clean Karl Liew’s office. Between September and October 2016, she was also deployed to clean his home.[7] On these occasions, she was not fairly compensated. When Parti Liyani was fired without notice on 28 October 2016, she said the following to Karl Liew:

“I know why. You angry (sic) because I refused to clean up your toilet.”[2]

On the day of her termination, she also said that she would report her illegal deployment to the Ministry of Manpower.[5]

Timeline leading to Parti’s arrest

On 28 October 2016, Parti Liyani was given about two hours to pack her belongings and vacate the Liew household. After which, she immediately flew home to Surabaya, Indonesia, leaving three boxes of her belongings to be shipped over.[8] The day after her departure, members of the Liew family found “stolen” items in these boxes.[9] On 30 October 2016, Parti Liyani’s ex-employer, Liew Mun Leong and his son, Karl Liew filed a police report against her.[10] Parti Liyani returned to Singapore on 2 December 2016 to seek employment but was arrested at Changi Airport upon her arrival.[5]

Court trials

 
Parti Liyani and her defence counsel, Anil Balchandani, in 2020. Photo from HOME.

From 2016 to 2020, Parti Liyani was not permitted to work due to the ongoing investigations. She sought shelter at the Humanitarian Organisation for Migrant Economics (HOME) during this time. Parti was quoted to have said the following about her court case:

“While this case was ongoing, I have been hiding all these (sic) news from my family… I especially did not want my mother to know, because my mother is already so old and I did not want her to fall sick… I wasn't best able to support my family and my hometown, but prior to the trial I had told my family that I would be unable to get money, and I asked for their apology.”[11]

In September 2020, HOME raised S$28,000 in funds to support Parti Liyani’s food business which she plans to set up once she returns to Indonesia.[12][13]

District Court trial: Charges & sentencing (2017 - 2019)

 
The Gerald Genta watch (valued at S$10,000) from the second charge. Photo from HOME.

Parti Liyani was charged with three counts of theft in dwelling and one count of theft as a servant in August 2017 for allegedly stealing from four people in the Liew household.[14] Her charges were as such:

Charge No. Alleged victim Item(s) stolen Refs.
1st Charge (under Section 381 of the Penal Code) Liew Mun Leong Valuables worth S$1,400 including:
  • Two Longchamp bags
  • A partially spoilt Pioneer DVD player
 [1][2]
2nd Charge (under Section 380 of the Penal Code) Karl Liew Kai Lung Valuables worth over S$30,000, including:
  • A damaged S$10,000 Gerald Genta watch
  • Two iPhone 4s
  • A Gucci Wallet
3rd Charge (under Section 380 of the Penal Code) Liew Cheng May Valuables worth S$1,100, including:
  • S$250 Gucci sunglasses
  • Various pieces of jewellery
4th Charge (under Section 380 of the Penal Code) Heather Lim Mei Ern
  • S$1,000 Prada bag
  • S$500 Gucci sunglasses
 
The Pioneer DVD player from the first charge. Photo from HOME.

She was later charged with an additional offence for being in possession of items that were obtained fraudulently.[15] Parti Liyani’s 19-day District Court trial started in April 2018.[16][17] Her pro bono lawyer, Anil Balchandani argued that the items allegedly stolen by Parti Liyani were either gifted to her or items that she found to be discarded.[18][19] In March 2019, Parti Liyani was found guilty of her charges but filed an appeal to the High Court against all four charges.[20]

High Court trial: Appeal & acquittal (2019 - 2020)

In an interview with the Humanitarian Organisation for Migrant Economics (HOME), Parti Liyani’s defence counsel, Anil Balchandani shared more about the difficulties of the trial.[21] According to the defence counsel:

“I was very impressed by Parti’s resolve. Because someone in her shoes generally faces more than just the pressure from the legal system. There is a family she has to take care of, probably living expenses in Singapore and just the inability to talk to anybody… She could’ve restarted her life, continued working in another country and just thought about what happened in October 2016 as a bad dream.”[22]

The appeal process lasted for several months until Justice Chan Seng Onn overturned Parti Liyani's four theft charges on 4 September 2020.[23] According to Justice Chan, the District Court did not consider the credibility of the Liew family’s testimonies, among other points.[24] For example, Karl Liew reportedly testified in court that the multiple items of “stolen” women’s clothing belonged to him because he liked to cross-dress.[25] Parti Liyani was acquitted of her final charge under the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order & Nuisance) Act on 8 September 2020.

References/ Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tang, Louisa. "Changi Airport Group chairman’s former maid jailed 26 months for theft". TODAY. March 25, 2019. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE [2020] SGHC 187 Magistrate’s Appeal No 9068 of 2019/01". Supreme Court. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  3. ↑ Chua, Alfred. "Items taken were damaged or discarded, claimed Liew Mun Leong’s former maid". TODAY. September 25, 2018. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  4. ↑ Andres, Gabrielle. "Timeline: How former maid Parti Liyani was acquitted of stealing from Changi Airport Group chairman's family". Channel News Asia. September 7, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Yang, Calvin. "Timeline: How acquitted ex-maid Parti Liyani, ex-CAG chairman’s family went from harmony to High Court fight". The Straits Times. September 11, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "MOM’s reply to Media Queries on Illegal Deployment Complaints". Ministry of Manpower. September 8, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Statement on Ms Parti Liyani's Illegal Deployment Complaint". Ministry of Manpower. September 6, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  8. ↑ Ng, Charmaine. "Family's valuables found in maid's boxes, court told". The Straits Times. August 16, 2018. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  9. ↑ Shaffiq Alkhatib. "Maid said valuables she allegedly stole were dumped in trash bags". The New Paper. April 26, 2018. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  10. ↑ ""I never believed I was guilty": An Indonesian domestic worker's fight to clear her name". Home. September 2020. Accessed on 5 October 2020.
  11. ↑ Yong, Michael. "Maid acquitted of stealing from Changi Airport Group chairman’s family hid her ordeal from her family". Channel News Asia. September 5, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  12. ↑ Lim, Kimberly Anne. "Over $28k raised for ex-maid cleared of stealing from Changi Airport Group chairman". AsiaOne. September 7, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  13. ↑ Navene Elangovan. "Acquitted Indonesian domestic worker receives donations of S$28,000 in less than a day". TODAY. September 7, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  14. ↑ Tan, Adeline. "Former maid of CAG chairman walks free after last charge cleared". The New Paper. September 9, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  15. ↑ Yee, Johnathan. "Courts Drop Ex-Helper’s 5th & Final Charge, Now Her Name Is Cleared". MustShare News. September 8, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  16. ↑ Ng, Charmaine. "Husband felt thefts had been going on for years". The Straits Times. August 17, 2018. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  17. ↑ Chua, Alfred. "Liew Mun Leong’s ex-maid found guilty of stealing items worth over S$30,000". TODAY. March 20, 2019. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  18. ↑ Shaffiq Idris Alkhatib. "Maid accused of stealing said she salvaged items from trash bags". The Straits Times. April 26, 2018. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  19. ↑ Lum, Selina. "Maid accused of theft, then acquitted: DVD player faulty, CAG chief Liew Mun Leong couldn't give details on 'stolen' bags". The Straits Times. September 6, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  20. ↑ Lam, Lydia. "Maid found guilty of stealing S$30,000 worth of items from Changi Airport Group chairman’s family". Channel News Asia. March 20, 2019. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  21. ↑ Tan, Adeline. "Trial of ex-maid Parti Liyani was ‘very, very difficult’: Lawyer". The New Paper. September 11, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  22. ↑ HOME. "Interview with Anil Balchandani, Parti Liyani’s Defence Lawyer". YouTube. September 9, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  23. ↑ Lam, Lydia. "Parti Liyani, former maid of CAG chairman, cleared of last remaining charge". Channel News Asia. September 8, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  24. ↑ Lim, Janice. "Maid acquitted of stealing from CAG chairman Liew Mun Leong says she forgives him, but wants apology". TODAY. September 5, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
  25. ↑ Tang, Louisa. "High Court acquits maid of stealing S$34,000 worth of items from CAG chairman Liew Mun Leong’s home". TODAY. September 4, 2020. Accessed on 6 October 2020.
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