Grisly Hong Kong murders spark banker backlash

Yahoo – AFP, Judy Ngao, 9 Nov 2014

Hong Kong's Wanchai district where the upmarket apartment of British expatriate 

Rurik Jutting, who has been accused of murder, is located (AFP Photo/Philippe Lopez)

Hong Kong (AFP) - The murder of two young Indonesian women in Hong Kong allegedly by a British expatriate has sparked a backlash against wealthy Western bankers accused of treating the financial hub as their own personal playground.

The victims were found mutilated in 29-year-old Rurik Jutting's upmarket apartment in Wanchai, streets away from the neon-lit bars of the neighbourhood's famous red-light district -- popular with expats and tourists at all hours.

Wanchai's neon-lit bars are popular 

with expats and tourists at all hours

(AFP Photo/Philippe Lopez)

Jutting, who has been charged with the double murder and will next appear in court Monday, was a regular on the strip, and the reported discovery of sex toys and cocaine in his apartment have added to the debauched portrayal of the former Bank of America Merrill Lynch securities trader.

The women's brutal murders and the accusations against Jutting have touched a nerve, triggering criticism of privileged foreign workers in the city's famous finance industry.

"Just like bankers anywhere, they earn top dollar without having many social responsibilities in Hong Kong," says C.H. Lo, 37, a jeweller who has lived in the city most of his life.

"Their disposable income and immoral lifestyle creates a demand for high-end drugs and prostitution.

"The Chinese believe the greatest virtue is to take care of one's own parents when they grow old. But expat bankers generally display a 'work hard, play hard' attitude."

English and Chinese language social media in Hong Kong has lit up with criticism of the behaviour of some Westerners in the wake of the killings.

The windows of the upmarket apartment

 of British expatriate Rurik Jutting, who is

 accused of murder, in Hong Kong's 

Wanchai district, pictured on November 7, 

2014 (AFP Photo/Philippe Lopez)

"A lot of losers from the West think they are God once they come to Asia. Too bad they give all western expats a bad reputation," said one response to a news story of Jutting's arrest posted online.

"Some expats get to Asia and develop a huge ego and superiority complex, thinking they are above the law, doing things they would never consider in their home countries," said another.

Foreigners also expressed fear for their own reputation.

"Agree, expats should behave better, I can feel our reputation going down year after year because of these scumbags," one post said.

Growing divide

With ongoing pro-democracy protests in the city spurred on by its increasing wealth disparity, there are also those who see well-paid bankers as part of that wider problem.

Hong Kong has one of the largest wealth gaps in the developed world, and a fifth of the population lives in poverty, according to charity Feeding Hong Kong.

"Expat bankers are overpaid and that has contributed to the wealth gap," said 31-year-old media worker Maggie Ho.

Hong Kong has one of the largest wealth

gaps in the developed world, and a fifth of the

population lives in poverty, according to

 charity Feeding Hong Kong (AFP Photo/

Dale de la Rey)

"I think locals have been rather wary of bankers following the Lehman Brothers crisis," she added, referring to the 2008 collapse of the US banking giant.

Jutting's case has also sparked an outpouring of confessional tales from those inside the industry -- stories which fuel its critics.

"The hardest thing to do is to ask corporations and people for money. That's the essence of banking. We had to entertain people a lot," one Hong Kong banker, who declined to be named, told AFP.

"Here, you have access to a broader range of prostitution and it's at a fraction of the price than in New York.

"At one bachelor party in a (hotel) penthouse suite, we would have prostitutes performing a soapy strip dance in the bathroom, while other prostitutes would be performing oral sex on the couch. That's the essence of being a trader -- it's a rock star fantasy and mentality," he said.

"I remember one banker who had so much money that at one recreational softball game, he was just handing out a lot of cocaine."

Wanchai's neon-lit bars are popular with

 expats and tourists at all hours (AFP

Photo/Philippe Lopez)

'Emotional and chemical' highs

The city offers an intoxicating new world for many young Westerners, but some are unable to handle the adjustment, said another Hong Kong banker who also did not want to be named.

"It's easy for the dorky kid in high school to suddenly find himself in the cool crowd at the hottest nightclub, and to keep this high -- emotional as well as chemical -- he's more than willing to throw his inflated disposable income at whoever can keep it going," he said.

But while there are those who go to extremes, bankers should not all be tarred with the same brush, he added.

"There are many bankers who choose not to be a complete jackass... Alcohol is the only thing I consume and in moderation."

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Conundrum of living on under $4,500 a month in pricey Switzerland

Yahoo – AFP, May 15, 2014

Conundrum of living on under $4,500 a month in pricey Switzerland (AFP)

Geneva (AFP) - Surrounded by luxury at the high-end Geneva hotels where she works, Alcina Esteves de Almeida sometimes goes hungry -- her salary not enough to make ends meet in pricy Switzerland.

"I have to give up a lot, and I often can't eat properly," the 52-year-old Portuguese chambermaid told AFP.

While De Almeida's gross monthly salary of 3,400 Swiss francs ($3,840, 2,790 euros) might sound decent, it does not stretch far in the wealthy Alpine nation.

In fact, unions and leftwing parties in Switzerland insist that no one in the country should make do with less than 22 Swiss francs ($25, 18 euros) an hour, or 4,000 francs ($4,515, 3,280 euros) a month.

Their initiative to introduce the world's highest minimum wage will be put to a referendum on Sunday as part of Switzerland's direct democratic system.

A poll last week however hinted that two-thirds of voters in the country, which currently has no obligatory national minimum salary, will say "no".

Opponents, including the government and most of Switzerland's powerful business community, argue that requiring a minimum wage would make it more difficult for young people to enter the workforce and could prove deadly to many businesses.

But De Almeida, a youthful divorcee with a tight ponytail and dark eyes, insists a minimum wage should be established to ensure working people "can live a decent life."

"That is not the case for me currently," she said, sitting on a bench near the highrise on the outskirts of Geneva that she calls home.

After unemployment insurance and other social charges, De Almeida nets 2,800 francs a month, but when she has paid the 1,200 franc rent for her cramped studio, plus taxes, phone bills and a monthly bus pass at 70 francs, there is little left.

On top of that, she dishes out 400 francs a month for health insurance, which kicks in only after her medical expenses pass the 1,500-franc mark.

Reluctant to see a doctor

"I really have trouble living on my salary," she said, noting that she is reluctant to see a doctor, and always considers price over quality when food shopping.

She certainly cannot afford small pleasures like going to the cinema, which in Geneva costs 19 francs a ticket for adults and 14 francs for children.

De Almeida is not alone. One in 10 people working in Switzerland, an estimated 330,000 individuals, make less than 4,000 Swiss francs a month, according to promoters of the "Decent Salary" initiative.

Opponents stress that minimum pay is already written into collective bargaining agreements for many sectors, but the unions maintain that such agreements cover only about half of all workers.

And they point out that most sectors that are heavily dominated by women, such as retail, hotel and restaurant services and call centres, are not covered.

"Emma", a 30-year-old Italian citizen who wished to remain anonymous, said there were no such agreements regulating wages at the watchmaking subcontractor business she had been working at for the past three years as an administrative assistant.

Making 3,600 francs a month before social charges, she said she had no choice but to live with her boyfriend, who helps cover the 2,600-franc rent for her Geneva flat and the 500 francs she pays each month for her daughter's daycare.

"When I go to the supermarket, I can't spend more than 100 francs a week," Emma said.

Giuliana Mion, a 31-year-old Venezuelan chambermaid at a luxury Geneva hotel, said the only way her family could afford to eat meat and fish was by shopping across the border in France, where her 3,400-franc monthly salary stretched much further.

"Mario", a 25-year-old Italian citizen also requesting anonymity testified to the difficulty of making ends meet even when working what most people would consider a good job.

Currently unemployed, he spent three years working as a private business pilot for a Geneva-based company, earning a gross salary of just 2,000 francs per month.

He had lived near the Geneva airport with two colleagues, each paying 700 francs a month in rent.

"At the end of the month, I basically had nothing left," he said, lamenting that saving up for the future, a holiday, or even a new pair of shoes was difficult.

Related Article:

Protest day for fast-food workers planned for more than 30 countries

Protest day for fast-food workers planned for more than 30 countries

• Union representatives gather in New York City

• Protests will call for pay of $15 an hour

theguardian.com, Associated Press in New York, Wednesday 7 May 2014

Protesters in New York call for higher wages for fast-food workers. Photograph:
Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Labour organisers say they are planning another day of fast-food protests next week, with coordinated actions expected in the US and more than 30 countries this time around.

Union representatives from countries including Argentina, Hong Kong, Italy, New Zealand and Panama gathered in New York this week to share tips and strategise for the demonstrations slated to take place on 15 May. Organisers announced the global actions at a news conference outside a McDonald's in New York on Wednesday afternoon.

The protests, calling for pay of $15 an hour in the US, have gained national media attention since they began in New York in late 2012. The push is getting financial and organisational support from the Service Employees International Union – which has more than 2 million members – and has served as an important backdrop as President Barack Obama and Democratic lawmakers seek to raise the federal minimum wage in an election year.

Although the effort to raise the federal minimum wage in Congress seems unlikely to succeed, several states and localities have raised their minimum wages recently.

The federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour was last raised in 2009. That translates to about $15,000 a year, assuming an employee works 40 hours a week.

The protests come at a time when the widening income gap has become a pressing issue. Since 1980, income has grown the most for top earners, while falling for the poorest 20% of families. Advocates for raising the minimum wage say a growing number of people in low-paying jobs are trying to support families.

Fast-food workers have historically been difficult to unionise, because of the high turnover rates in the industry.

Turnouts for the fast-food protests over the past year have varied. In New York, chanting demonstrators led by community leaders and local lawmakers typically flood a fast-food location for about a half hour, temporarily making it impossible for customers to enter the restaurant and place orders. Once the crowd disperses, however, restaurant operations quickly return to normal.

In other cities, demonstrations are often much smaller.

Organisers say many of the protesters are workers who walked off their jobs at places including McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell. But such chains typically rely on a large number of part-time workers, in order to avoid paying overtime, meaning they can usually call up other workers to take over. The practice underscores another common grievance in the industry – employees say they never know how many hours of work they'll be given from week to week.

Ron Oswald, general secretary of the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations, said at the two-day meeting in New York that the idea of fast-food workers from around the world collaborating would have been unthinkable 10 years ago.

But, he said: "Fast food workers have had enough.”

Organisers say protests are planned in countries including Japan, Pakistan and South Korea. But the scale of the actions will vary.

Louise Marie Rantzau, a 21-year-old McDonald's worker in Denmark, said she and her colleagues planned to take a photo of themselves holding a banner outside a fast-food restaurant, then post the picture on social media. She said a collective agreement with McDonald's prevents workers from protesting.

Her situation also underscores how fast-food employees work under varying conditions around the world. Rantzau said she earns about $21 an hour because of the collective agreement. Still, she noted that her colleagues often aren't aware of their rights, such as shift breaks and extra pay in certain conditions.

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Glimmer of Hope for Indonesian Migrant Worker Facing Execution

Jakarta Globe, Mar 29, 2014

Jakarta. An Indonesian domestic worker on death row for murder in Saudi Arabia is 1 million riyal (Rp 3 billion, $266,645) short of delaying her execution, as the victim’s family has agreed to shave off 2 million riyal from their initial “blood money” demand and accept a smaller payment for the time being.

“The family of Nura al-Garib has announced that they will accept the diyat if an additional 1 million riyal is [added] — making the total 5 million riyal,” head of the National Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (BNP2TKI) Gatot Abdullah Mansyur said on Friday, as quoted by the official website of the Cabinet Secretary setkab.go.id.

Satinah Binti Jumadi Ahmad, 41, of Ungaran, Central Java, was sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia after admitting that she killed her former employer Nura in 2007 and fled with 37,970 riyal. She is scheduled to be executed on April 4 if the Indonesian government fails to collect the proper amount of diyat, or blood money, by that date.

The al-Garib family initially requested 10 million riyal in 2011, but negotiations between the family and the Indonesian government lessened the amount to 7 million riyal.

Gathering the funds has been a struggle thus far, but Indonesian celebrities, public officials and labor activists have campaigned on Satinah’s behalf to chip in for her cause.

According to BNP2TKI data, 4 million riyal (the equivalent of Rp 12 billion, or $1 million) has been collected — 3 million riyal from the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, 500,000 riyal from Indonesian Association of Migrant Workers Service Companies (Apjati) and another 500,000 riyal from various donors.

Gatot added that if the victim’s family stuck to their agreement, Satinah would not be beheaded on April 4. The execution could be postponed for as long as two years while the remaining 2 million riyal in diyat is paid off.

“Inshallah [God willing], the execution will be postponed for two years,” Gatot said as quoted by news portal Detik.com.

He also aired hope that the victim’s family would forgive Satinah after receiving the 5 million riyal and not seek the remaining money.

A photo of Satinah Binti Jumadi Ahmad is seen on her sister’s phone
in Ungaran, East Java. (JG Photo/Dhana Kencana)

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Sri Lanka to ban women from being maids abroad: minister

The Daily Star, AFP, January 24, 2013

Sri Lankan Buddhist monks and their supporters march outside the president's
 residence demanding authorities to stop sending Sri Lankan women as maids
 to the Middle East following the recent beheading of a Sri Lankan maid by Saudi
Arabia, during a protest in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013. (AP Photo/
Eranga Jayawardena)

                            

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka said on Thursday it would bar women of all ages from travelling abroad to work in menial jobs, following an international outcry over the beheading of a young nanny in Saudi Arabia.

Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella announced that women under 25 were now banned from going to the Arab state to work as maids, adding that it was the first step towards a worldwide travel ban for low-paying jobs.

The move was in response to the execution earlier this month at a prison in Riyadh of Sri Lankan maid Rizana Nafik, who was only 17 when she was charged with smothering a four-month-old baby in Saudi Arabia in 2005.

"As a first step we are raising the age limit to 25. We will gradually move towards a total ban on our women going abroad to do low-paying jobs," Rambukwella told reporters.

He did not say by when the total ban would kick in, but said the authorities have started to discourage women from going to the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia where most maids are paid less than $300 a month.

Nafik was beheaded after she was found guilty of smothering an infant in her care after an argument with the child's mother, the Saudi interior ministry has said.

The US and the United Nations led international condemnation of the Saudi authorities over the January 9 execution.

Nearly 1.7 million Sri Lankans are employed abroad and the $6 billion they sent home last year is a key source of foreign exchange for the government.

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