Newborn dies as maid delivers

A runaway maid, who delivered a baby after allegedly being raped, has been referred to the Dubai Public Prosecution. The maid's baby died after she delivered him without any medical assistance.

A private clinic in Al Mutaina area notified the police that a newborn was brought dead to the hospital. At the hospital, a nurse told the police that the 27-year-old Ethiopian maid and her friend had brought the baby to the hospital on Wednesday.

The police questioned the maid about the baby's father. She told the police that she had absconded from her sponsor's home three years ago and started doing part-time jobs. Nine months ago, she said, an Ethiopian man contacted her, asking her to go to his house in Sharjah to clean it.

At the end of the job, he allegedly asked her to have sex with him, which she refused. The man then allegedly assaulted her and raped her. He gave her Dh60 before letting her go, she claimed.

When asked why she didn't report the crime to the police, she said she was absconding and didn't want to get deported as she needed to work to support her family back home.

The woman said when she learnt that she was pregnant, she decided to keep the baby, but did not go to any doctor. A friend of hers gave her the phone number of an Arab woman who could her help her deliver the child. On the day of delivery, this woman allegedly led the maid to the parking lot of a residential building to deliver the baby. The baby was born alive, but on returning to her house, the maid noticed he was not well. She rushed the child to the private clinic, where he was declared brought dead.

The police are investigating the incident and have launched a manhunt for the alleged rapist. A female friend of the maid told Khaleej Times that she absconded on account of poor treatment from her sponsor.

Source: Khaleej Times