Singapore’s Filipino community grieves after car hits six domestic workers, killing two
- Among those involved were a pair of sisters, one of whom died while the other is in critical condition
- Their friends mourn lives lost so far from home and family in the Philippines, while others point out the lack of space for domestic workers to gather
Kok Xinghui
Published: 8:30pm, 30 Dec, 2019
The six women involved in the accident were close friends who often met on weekends. Photo: Facebook
It was a Sunday like any other in
Singapore
, and Filipino domestic workers were gathered near the Lucky Plaza mall on the bustling shopping district of Orchard Road. The mood was festive. In a video posted on Facebook, two women danced to music played from a loudspeaker while others in front of them embraced.
Then came a loud bang, and screams – an out-of-control car had mounted the kerb on Nutmeg Road and hit six women, before crashing through a railing and falling several metres to the shopping centre’s car park exit lane. Two of those struck by the black Honda died; the four others were injured.
Among those involved in the December 29 accident were a pair of sisters, according to local media. Arlyn Nucos, 50, was killed, while Arcely, 56, is in critical condition. Abigail Danao Leste, 41, was also killed, while the other three women were hospitalised – two of whom were discharged on Monday evening.
The six were close friends who often met on weekends. Arlyn and Abigail had been working in Singapore for more than 20 years, while some of the injured had been in the city state for at least a decade. The driver, a 64-year-old man who works for ride-hailing firm Grab, was arrested at the scene.
I can tell she was a very good friend because her friends are all cryingBhing Navato, who knew one of the deceased
The sense of loss among the Filipino community in Singapore was palpable. Domestic worker Josephine Lopez, 38, who has had a job in the country for seven years, said her phone had not stopped buzzing since the accident. Her friends are circulating photos of the women, expressing their sadness that a Sunday picnic turned into a tragedy.
“It’s so sad because we are all here to work for our families back home, not because we want to leave them,” Lopez said. “I cannot imagine what their families feel now. It is very painful.”
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Bhing Navato, 46, had returned home to
the Philippines
for the holidays when she heard the news from friends. The domestic worker knew Abigail, and said the community had taken her death hard.
“She was really friendly and smiled a lot and she never failed to say hi when we saw each other,” she said. “I can tell she was a very good friend because her friends are all crying.”
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In a Facebook post, another Filipino woman working in Singapore wrote: “I don’t know you but my heart was crushed by watching the video.”
The accident took place in Singapore’s busy Orchard Road shopping district, where many domestic workers gather on their day off. Photo: AFP
She wrote that the six women were just having a day out after a long week of working for their families back home in the Philippines, dealing with the daily “stress, depression, fatigue” while remitting most of their salaries home.
Yeo Guat Kwang, chairman of Singapore’s Centre for Domestic Employees, said some of the victims’ family members did not have travel documents and the centre was trying to contact them “to do all that is necessary”.
“They are quite senior workers and they have been contributing to our families and supporting them all the while. We definitely want to do our best to see what more we can assist them with,” Yeo said.
The Philippine embassy also expressed its condolences, saying it would provide all assistance needed to the victims’ families. The embassy estimates that there are about 200,000 Filipinos working in the Lion City, and about 40 per cent have jobs as domestic workers.
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As of this June, there were 255,800 domestic workers in the Lion City. They live with their employers, and get just one day off per week.
For those in the Filipino community, Lucky Plaza is their “Little Manila”, where they remit money home, meet friends, and buy clothes and food.
Jen, 42, who has worked in Singapore for a decade, said some of the women were her friends on Facebook and she saw them whenever she went to Lucky Plaza. Jen, who did not want her full name published, said she would rather not sit by the pavement, but there was little space for domestic workers to gather and travelling to a park would require spending money on transport.
“We meet friends to pass the time because our families are very far away. So we just buy food, sit down and eat, sit outside the whole day talking about our families,” Jen said.
On Sunday, she had stayed home to rest, and felt sad and lonely when she heard about the accident “because you don’t know what happened”.
“You come here to Singapore to work and suddenly you’re dead. It’s so sad. If it happens to me, my family will be so sad.”
https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/sout...filipino-community-grieves-after-car-hits-six