Singapore Girl With A Twist…

By Faraz Shauketaly

riya — clearly not her real name ­— is a 43-year old mother of three from Polonnaruwa, who arrived in Singapore about four months ago. She borrowed heavily at penal interest rates, handing over a land deed in the process. Her husband is largely a non-player in the marriage with the usual complaints: jobless, drunk-most-times, works-when-he-can type of male species.
Priya went through innumerable ‘agents’ to get this job as a domestic in a Singaporean household. She was promised a salary of around Rs 65,000 a month and so had no qualms in parting with the Rs 200,000 ‘fee’ for the job. It looked like Priya was on her way to being a success story much on the lines of the ‘Singapore Girl’ advertising slogan for Singapore Airlines – which since its inception in 1968 has proved to be one of the world’s most enduring tag lines in advertising globally.

The nightmare started when Priya finally arrived in Singapore after months of badgering her chain of ‘agents’. She had to hang around for more than three hours before her Sri Lankan contact in Singapore turned up. She was taken to a cramped two-bedroom Housing Development apartment.

Designed and authorised for not more than four people, the apartment had around 10 occupants. All were Sri Lankan women, some in their early 20s and the older ones way past their half century. The coming colours, as they say, didn’t appear too good for Priya but with no money she had to place her faith in hope. There was no job, she soon realised talking to the others. They were all without exception, in the same predicament that she was in. As dusk fell  the other younger ones readied themselves up ‘just to go out’ as it was boring in the flat, was how they put it. When they were gone the older woman spilled the beans: they had all gone to the Serangoon Road and Orchard Road areas. These were the ‘red light’ areas. Priya knew the score then. It took another two weeks of agony — wasted promises of domestic employment.

She was given a few part-time jobs when she got around Rs 500 per hour. A lot of money in Sri Lanka but totally inadequate in Singapore. It was not many days later that she too joined the others on their nocturnal visits. Almost too easily she had joined quite unwittingly and certainly unwillingly, the world’s oldest profession. She had, after all, to repay the loan, send money back for the kids and keep herself going in Singapore. Joining the others in their ‘chummery’ was all about survival.

The story was almost the same for Akram, a 23-year old from Colombo. He was promised a job in a hotel. He paid a little less to his ‘agent’ – Rs 175,000 and was stuck in Singapore doing odd jobs and working illegally in the construction sector. He shared a room with five others in a flat designed for four adults. The promised riches were not even a blip on the horizon. He says it would have been far better to have worked even as a casual worker in any of Colombo’s hotels. He plans on saving enough money – a tall order in his present circumstance – to return home and get out of the mess he was placed in by his ‘agent’.

For Maria the story was a bit different. She came to Singapore with her six-year old daughter and husband Bandula. Bandula managed to get a job as a gardener and that was the last she saw or heard of her husband. She learned that he had ‘run off’ with another Sri Lankan to Malaysia. Maria too descended the slippery path to debauchery and virtual enslavement: except she had to do at least three ‘tricks’ a night as she had to pay someone else to look after her daughter.
She was lucky if at the end of the month, after paying her dues to her new ‘agent’ (read pimp) and her mobile bill, if she was left with Singapore Dollars 400 – around Rs 32,000. At least she had no bills back home. She was planning to return to Sri Lanka with her daughter who had no schooling or education while in Singapore. She had never smoked or consumed alcohol; until, that is she took on her new job in Singapore. When she was sober, her thoughts turned more logical: Maria planned to return to Singapore after persuading her mother in Colombo to take care of the little girl.

Entering Singapore is easy for a Sri Lankan. Visas are granted on arrival. It remains one of the few places on Earth where Sri Lankans can travel without obtaining a visa first. However, to work officially in Singapore one needs a permit which would be almost next to impossible to obtain. As the numbers of Sri Lankans working illegally grows, it is perhaps a matter of time before the Singaporean authorities impose visa conditions for Sri Lankan passport holders. The number of illegal workers from Sri Lanka grows daily with unscrupulous and mainly unlicensed agents preying on the aspirations of people from rural areas. The vast number of these illegal workers are from rural areas in Sri Lanka.

Most have never travelled abroad and are bewildered. Their predicament is compounded by the fact that they have very little money needed for survival. Hiding from the authorities, keeping as low a profile as possible and earning a crust is the focus of activities. In a tightly regulated nation like Singapore, the going is even tougher.

The bars, cafes and restaurants around these areas and in the Chinatown area, are full 24/7. In the night the areas are as full as they are during the day. Hundreds of Sri Lankan women are to be found here all rather hoping for some business that would enable them to eke out a living. Maria said that her husband had fallen prey to the decadence – almost an apology it sounded like but we knew she meant that he had fallen victim to the bright lights and lure.

The shops and restaurants do a roaring trade, as the vibrancy that is Singapore moves on relentlessly, oblivious to the mental anguish that has shattered these womenfolks’ pride and hopes of a better life. Most wanted nothing more basic than the ability to build a home for themselves and to give their children a good education.

Priya bemoaned the lack of notification from the authorities in Colombo. They should
educate people on exactly how they should go abroad for work – not just say that there are systems in place to overcome issues
like rogue agents. Information, she says should be constantly and regularly advertised on radio and television. Regular warnings will put people on notice of the inherent dangers.

Priya is deeply ashamed at the turn of events in her own life. Poor yes. Ignorant of facts yes. Trusting yes. A prostitute by choice no but by circumstance yes. In a world full of information from the internet and so-called globalisation, Priya’s plea rings a certain bell. For Priya her own life is the precise opposite of what Singapore Girl epitomises: dedicated care and service.