Speaking to CNA at her family home in East Java province on Wednesday (Feb 3), Ms Parti, 46, said she hopes what happened to her can motivate other migrant workers to keep on fighting if they did not do anything wrong.
“If you’re innocent, you have to defend yourself and fight. Don’t give up.
“Don’t think because you have a family (to take care of), you have to quit. Don’t be like that. Hopefully, there won’t be any case like this again in Singapore,” she said, adding that she has no regrets.
Ms Parti told CNA that her relationship with the family was initially cordial. She said that she barely spoke with Mr Liew Mun Leong as he was rarely at home.
But one day, there was a disagreement as she was ordered to clean Mr Karl Liew's home, which he had moved into sometime in 2016, said Ms Parti.
After being terminated, Ms Parti decided to return to Singapore to seek employment, but was shocked when she was arrested at Changi Airport upon arrival on Dec 2, 2016. The accusation was that she had stolen from the Liew family.
During the trial, the East Java native was helped mostly by the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME). The NGO helped to get her a translator and paid for all her expenses as she was not able to work after being arrested.
“I stayed at HOME’s (shelter) and was given allowance for personal needs. Everything was provided by HOME for four years and until I left on Jan 27; they also accompanied me to the airport,” said Ms Parti.
There were other migrant workers in the shelter who also had problems and Ms Parti spent her days helping them. She said that helping others saw her through the tough times.
She remembers helping to accompany a fellow Indonesian migrant worker to the airport, manpower ministry and police station. “I had many activities. I didn’t want to stay put and just wait until my case ended. I was busy.”
Apart from HOME, the Indonesian embassy also checked on her regularly and a representative was present during the trial.
Looking ahead, she hopes what happened to her can be an eye-opener for employers.
“Hopefully, after my case, Singaporean employers will not accuse their maids arbitrarily. Even though they are maids, don't look down on them,” she said.