Camelia Pasandaran & Ismira Lutfia, Jakarta – The government has reiterated that a moratorium on sending domestic workers to Malaysia is still in force, following reports of another worker abuse case.

"We are warning the public once more that working in Malaysia is still banned until the MoU [with Malaysia on migrant workers] is clarified," said Muhaimin Iskandar, the manpower and transmigration minister.

A 26-year-old Indonesian from East Java, identified only as WF, who went to Malaysia illegally in February, is being treated at Penang General Hospital after allegedly being tortured and raped by her employers.

Malaysian police have arrested her employers – a 41-year-old contractor and his 36-year-old wife. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called WF on Sunday and promised she would receive any necessary assistance.

Muhaimin said WF left Indonesia during the moratorium and her documents showed that she was supposed to be working in Singapore, not Malaysia. Despite WF's illegal status, Muhaimin said the government and the Indonesian Embassy in Malaysia would provide her legal assistance.

"The Malaysian police are committed to investigating the case and we will wait for the legal process," he said, adding that officials were ready to support the investigation. He added that a special team had been assigned to monitor WF's recovery in the hospital.

WF has accused her male employer of sexually abusing her since May, and his wife of beating her, said Widyarka Ryananta, an Indonesian Embassy official who spoke with her on Sunday.

She was also allegedly beaten with a belt, and her back scalded with boiling water and her breasts with a hot iron, he said.

Muchamad Cholily, chairman of the East Java chapter of the Indonesian Migrant Workers Union, criticized the government for not doing enough to stop thousands of Indonesian workers from entering Malaysia illegally.

"There are roughly 5,000 illegal workers entering Malaysia every month," he said. Muchamad blamed the situation on a lack of controls at border crossings and embarkation points. He claimed that authorities were deliberately ignoring the situation in an attempt to reduce unemployment at home.

"While the moratorium is still in effect, the government has never offered any alternative destinations for migrant workers to seek employment abroad. I think this is why job seekers are still opting to go to Malaysia despite the ban," he said.

Indonesia banned domestic workers from going to Malaysia last year amid an outcry over a series of worker abuse cases involving Malaysian employers. The two countries are still negotiating an agreement that is hope to provide greater protections for some 230,000 Indonesian domestic workers in Malaysia.

Indonesian activists said WF's case should serve as a wake-up call for Malaysia and Indonesia to expedite the signing of the deal.

Muhaimin said on Monday that the government would fast-track the negotiations. "It will be evaluated in one month," he said.

[Additional reporting from AFP.]