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In 1985 Emma Philapal dropped out of college in the Philippines to become a domestic helper in Hong Kong. Four years later, she went home to marry and then returned to Hong Kong for work. Within a year, her marriage was in ruins because of her husband's adultery. Pregnant and broke, she returned to the Philippines. But after her child was born, she was unable to resist the lure of Hong Kong's higher-paying jobs, even though it meant long hours and leaving her daughter in the Philippines. "Each time I hear a baby cry, I think of my daughter and start crying," she says. Yet she doesn't feel abandoned. "The Lord has a plan for me. The church is family to me, and I get the support and prayer when I need help."Philapal's situation is increasingly common in Hong Kong, one of Asia's most prosperous cities. For more than two decades, Hong Kong families have hired foreign helpers, especially Filipinas (women), for housework and childcare. The profession of domestic helper has become so tightly linked with Filipinos that the Chinese term banmui (Philippine girl) has become synonymous with maid or servant. Hong Kong is now home to an estimated 170,000 Filipinos, 141,500 of them domestic helpers.One reason workers like Philapal remain hopeful is that Hong Kong's local churches are reaching out to her and others. Not only are they caring for an at-risk group of migrant workers; churches are also equipping these workers to be a Christian influence where they work—mostly non-Christian households.

Every Sunday in central Hong Kong, Filipinos become visible for a few hours when they gather en masse on their day off. Gathering in the shadows of international banks and luxury boutiques, they reconnect with kababayans (fellow Filipino nationals). They attend church, renew friendships, and dance to the latest Tagalog music until the curfew time imposed by most employers. This weekly merrymaking is a respite from the daily difficulties Filipino migrant workers face in Hong Kong. "Many Filipinas are homesick," says Barry Prior, senior pastor of the Wanchai Meth odist Church. "The chances of them surviving without the support and encouragement of a church are fairly remote."Many Filipino domestic helpers were teachers or nurses who had low income but high prestige. In Hong Kong, their situation is reversed, though their relatively lucrative wages (compared to Filipino standards) are still near the bottom of Hong Kong's scale."I used to be called Ma'am and was respected in the community," says Edna, a Filipina who asked that her full name not be disclosed. "But now I have to call my employer Ma'am, and I am nobody."Arlene Moran of Shepherd's Arms, a predominantly Filipino church, says some members of her church sleep under the dining tables in their employers' homes. Rex Verona of the Asian Migrant Center says that although Filipinos come to Hong Kong with standardized work contracts, employers often exploit them."I work from 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. each day and do not get paid extra for the long hours," says a woman who asked to be identified as Connie. "My Chinese employers do not treat me very well."Bias and prejudice against Filipina domestics is longstanding in Hong Kong and infects some Christians. "There is a strong class consciousness in Hong Kong society," says John McGovern, senior pastor of Hong Kong's Calvary Church. "I don't believe the Chinese would acknowledge it as prejudice, but they have a difficult time socializing with people who are not of the same status as themselves."

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October 2 2000, Vol. 44, No. 11